Thank you, Mr. Chair.
That's exactly what we're trying to avoid, layers of bureaucracy. We, as a government are not trying to deliver child care, not at all. We recognize this is a provincial jurisdiction; we recognize previous programs transferred money to provinces with absolutely no strings attached. There was never any guarantee this money would get into child care.
We do not want to deliver the service. Our goal is to provide parents with the resources they need to get the choice in child care that meets that family's unique needs, whether it's cash in hand or whether it's additional spaces that are so very much needed across the country. That's why we're giving the money directly to parents, so it doesn't have to flow through one or two or three or four levels of government. We want to make sure this money goes directly to parents because they can spend it best on their children. We believe they can spend it better and more efficiently than some of the other alternatives.