Mr. Speaker, I listened intently to the member's comments. He should review the information. He should ask his researchers to have a closer look. A number of the points he made were completely false.
He made the point that, with the plan negotiated by the 10 provinces with the Government of Canada, some day care/child care spaces would be closed and these children would be moved into new government spaces. That is completely false. The plan foresaw provinces working with the communities and with the people in existing spaces as well as in new spaces so we could improve those spaces, build upon them, bring salaries to a reasonable level for those people and grow in areas where we could and should grow.
He made the point that his plan was the best one for rural Canada, and that is completely false. For me that is important. I do not disagree that there is a role for a transfer of money. However, it is not the only point. To say that this is the best one for rural Canada is completely false, not if it is done alone. To give families true choices, they need to have options from which to chose.
I live in rural Canada. The private sector will not create those spaces. The not for profit sector cannot create those spaces without the help of government. They cannot afford to maintain the spaces they have now. One of thee day care centres I visited last week in Nova Scotia was at risk of closing because of a 35¢ an hour increase to the minimum wage.
The official language minority communities in this country could never create child care spaces without the help of a federal-provincial assistance program as previously negotiated.
I encourage the hon. member to support the motion so that we can at least keep the foundation of a national system that we could improve in the future.