Mr. Speaker, in these difficult times, Niagara families are facing unprecedented challenges as a result of the global economic downturn, but despite this uncertainty they can be assured that our government will deliver them the resources so the parents of Canada's two million preschoolers can choose how they care for their children.
Niagara families, like those around Canada, have varying priorities in their lives that require a more flexible child care plan that best suits their circumstances. The universal child care plan achieves this goal by annually providing $1,200 per child so that parents can choose how to raise their children. The plan also provides funding for the provinces and tax breaks to help create additional day care spaces.
Despite all of this, the opposition wishes to scrap the universal child care plan. Why? It is because the opposition refuses to accept that parents know better than it does about what is best for their children.
This government believes in Canadian families and will continue to give them choice in child care despite what the naysayers on the other side say.