Status of Women committee  What I want is a kind of morality. If we establish child care centres that pay good wages, we also need good wages for women at home. We agree.

Status of Women committee  Thanks for your question. There are many ways to do income splitting. In the United States they have tax brackets, so the wealthy do pay more than the poor. That helps address some of that concern you have about a windfall for the rich. The other suggestion has been to put a cap on it, so it would not be available for people above a certain income or for households above a certain income, I suppose.

Status of Women committee  A mother at home is given virtually nothing. So $5,000 is a lot. On the contrary, I get the impression it's being proposed that people who put their children in child care be given $10,000.

Status of Women committee  The proposal is to give more to them, but to give nothing to people whose children aren't in child care. That's unfair. I agree that $5,000 per child isn't a lot. However, if you have two or three children, it's enough. Right now in Canada, but perhaps not in Quebec, if you have three children, the government will help you put your children in child care and will pay more than you would earn working half time.

Status of Women committee  And what do you propose?

Status of Women committee  I would approve of funding a significant amount of money, for example, $5,000 to $10,000 per child, and let the parents purchase or arrange their child care things. I know that the day care movement has been so strong, so powerful a lobby, that it actually has the ear of government, and it's hard to deny their case.

Status of Women committee  I think you can look to all of them. Austria has vouchers for parents. Norway has funding for parents at home. I just read something today about Czechoslovakia, I think it was, that it gives a three-year maternity leave. Why don't we look at Europe, because they actually do understand how to balance it.

Status of Women committee  Just to whip right through some of those points, a lot of female entrepreneurs are in the home because they want to be with their children. Child care does not address their need. On the EI flexibility, have you considered having a man's contribution qualify the wife to be at home with the child?

Status of Women committee  All people in life at some point are care receivers and most end up caregivers. During the care receiving, we're usually in a position of vulnerability—we can't do it for ourselves. That's a universal state from time to time in our lives. That's what they have in common. Most seniors and handicapped people still want some autonomy about, “Okay, so I can't walk and I can't feed myself, but I sure want to have some choice in my life, so could you let me at least choose my caregiver?”

Status of Women committee  When funds are cut?

Status of Women committee  Absolutely. However, it must be admitted that the funds were not always correctly invested because they only met a few of women's desires and needs. However, you have to meet all needs. So the analysis of the situation of women who work at home was very well done, but we didn't do enough to acknowledge that of other women.

Status of Women committee  Well, Canada has signed the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, which has some articles in it that say a child has the right to the care of the parents wherever possible or to those people whom the parents have chosen; that the parents are in the best position to know the best interests of the child.

Status of Women committee  If I correctly understand the question—

Status of Women committee  In France they have a nice formula where you count children as people you share with, and the single-income family could use that. In the United States they have head of household. You can be a single parent and you can share with your children. So a single parent can benefit from that.

Status of Women committee  Do you mean for the two income-splitting things?