Calling it a historic moment for families, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Premier Doug Ford announced an agreement to bring $10 a day child care to Ontario.
The $13.2 million dollar plan was first announced in last year’s federal budget, with deals now in place in every province and territory across the country.
Child care fees will gradually be reduced over the next four years, reaching the $10-a day goal by September, 2025.
All Ontario families with children five years old and younger in participating licensed child care centres will see their fees reduced, up to 25 per cent, to a minimum of $12 per day, retroactive to April 1, 2022. In December 2022, parents will see another reduction.
In total, fees for families will be reduced in 2022, on average, by 50 per cent, relieving parents of $1.1 billion in child care costs. Families will see further fee reductions in September 2024, culminating in a final reduction to an average of $10-a-day child care by September 2025.
The provincial-federal agreement also includes the creation of roughly 86,000 new child care spaces for children aged five and younger, and the hiring of new early childhood educators and support improved compensation for all Registered Early Childhood Educators working in licensed child care.
“I said our government wouldn’t sign a deal that didn’t work for Ontario parents and I’m so proud of the work we’ve done with our federal partners to land an agreement that will lower costs for families across the province,” said Premier Doug Ford. “Given how complex Ontario’s child care system is, we wanted to get this right. Today, we’re delivering a deal that will keep money in the pockets of hard-working parents.”
