Mr. Speaker, last week marked the third anniversary of the Conservative government's decision to cancel the historic national child care program signed by the previous Liberal government and all provinces and territories.
The plan would have created hundreds of thousands of child care spaces and provided long-term and stable funding. It would have made a huge impact on working families, especially working mothers, in getting affordable, accessible and quality child care. It was the first step toward a real early learning and child care system that we need, as our last place ranking in child care demonstrates.
The very first decision, the first act of the Conservative Prime Minister was to cancel child care. The decision was driven by ideology and rooted in the old-fashioned idea that Canadian parents, primarily women, all have the choice to stay at home. Many do not have that choice.
A taxable monthly cheque is helpful, but it is not early learning and child care. By cutting that the Conservatives put politics before people.
The Conservatives have failed our young children and failed mothers and working families by turning back the clock on early learning and child care in Canada. That is a shameful record.