IN reaction to the passage the National Childcare program on Thursday, NDP Critic for Families, Children and Social Development Leah Gazan said in a statement: “This was a long time coming for parents across Canada who have been waiting for a National Childcare program. They will now have access to public, affordable, quality and accessible daycares because the NDP, child-care workers, unions and women’s organizations made this happen.”

She added: “Parents will no longer have to wonder about the care of their children when they go to work or about the cost of high-quality, reliable childcare for their little ones.”

Gazan said: “Without the NDP at the table, the Liberals would not have prioritized public and not-for-profit child-care providers. We insisted that this National Childcare program is public, affordable and available to all Canadians. New Democrats also ensured this program upholds the rights of Indigenous peoples to free, prior and informed consent on matters concerning their children, supports decent working conditions for child-care workers and for more transparency regarding government investments in childcare.

“And shamefully, Pierre Poilievre’s Conservatives have tried to stall the program at every step. They’ve pushed for a for-profit private system that parents can’t afford which would leave childcare workers worse off. Given the chance, Pierre Poilievre would cut the hard-fought supports that working families depend on—like this child care program.

“While New Democrats are proud to deliver a national childcare program, we know more needs to be done to support child-care workers. We must continue to fight for better pay and working conditions for child-care workers across the country. While childcare centers are struggling to find employees, Canada does not have a worker shortage—it has a wage, benefit, and pension shortage. We’ll always fight for a plan that puts families first, ensures that workers are treated with respect and Canadians pay less.”