Some childcare centres in Ontario could be losing their provincial funding.
The Ministry of Education’s decision impacts centres not enrolled in the federal $10-a-day program.
The directive was announced last month as part of a new funding formula to take effect in January.
The opposition is disappointed by the move.
NDP Child Care Critic Teresa Armstrong accuses Premier Ford of playing games with childcare funding.
“Families across Ontario deserve access to affordable and reliable childcare. Instead, we’re seeing wait lists explode across the province as affordable childcare becomes harder to find,” states Armstrong, in a statement.
“Instead of adding funding for affordable childcare spaces, Ford is choosing to take it away.”
The Association of Day Care Operators of Ontario says many of those centres have applied to participate in the federal program, only to be denied.
Executive Director Andrea Hannen says that is because the federal government wants to limit small business participation in the sector.
“This is devastating for the staff who work at those centres,” says Hannen in a release.
“It also means that moving forward, families who need assistance with their child care fees will have far fewer licensed child care choices.”
