Mr. Speaker, back in 1993 the election platform included a provision for creating 150,000 child care spaces and that was still not enough. As a matter of fact, today it is estimated that it would cost from $12 billion to $15 billion to provide all the estimated child care spaces.
The member raised the important issue of child care. Based on the latest reports, the problem is that the child care that has been provided by the provinces in their provincial jurisdiction has been poor quality child care. Part of the solution to child care is not simply to create more of these inadequate babysitting services but rather to deal with the issue of early childhood development.
The member is very familiar with Dr. Fraser Mustard. She is also familiar with the fact that the first year of a child's life is the most significant in terms of early childhood development. That is one of the reasons the House and the government agreed to double maternity and parental leave to a full year. This allows parents to give their children that secure, consistent attachment with an engaged, committed adult. That is what affects children more than anything.
Do we have to fix somehow the problems in the existing system? How are we going to address the situation where communities do not have the accessibility to child care because of their geographic location or community situation? What about the equity for those who choose to provide care in the home to their own children? What benefits should we give to the growing number of people who want to care for their own children?