I really liked what was said this morning, that when you invest in an adult, you reach a child. In terms of literacy, it is the same principle. When there are poor children, it is usually because there are poor parents. It is even truer for single parents. It is all the same thing. The whole thing has already been discussed in the issue of access to work, and the day care issue is part of it.
I am continuing in the same vein. Let’s talk about day care. The previous government had proposed an embryonic day care program that was similar in part to what is being done in Quebec. The program costs $1.5 billion a year in Quebec. The federal government planned to spend the equivalent of $1.5 billion for all of Canada. That is not much compared to what should be done but nonetheless it established the foundation for a similar program. In Quebec, from 1997 to last year, parents only paid $5 a day per child, which represented significant assistance. Now it is $7 per day. We know the per-child benefits that are distributed currently by the government. One of you said earlier that the benefit should be incorporated into the children’s allowance — tell me if I am wrong — to clearly point out the fact that it is not a benefit for day care centres, but a benefit to assist parents.
Is that opinion shared? Have I properly understood the message from the New Brunswick Child Care Coalition? Is that approach shared by the other stakeholders?