Feds pledge additional funding for child care across Canada

As more businesses are being permitted, and more Canadians are returning to work, more parents are trying to figure out child care options.

In response, the federal government is working closely with the provinces and territories to ensure all Canadian families have access to child care.

Minister of Families, Children and Social Development, Ahmed Hussen, announced the government is providing $625 million in support for the nation’s child care sector.

Combined with agreements under the Multilateral Early Learning and Child Care Framework, this investment means the Government of Canada will invest almost $1.2 billion to support child care in 2020-2021.

This represents a 67 per cent increase compared to the next highest year in history—the government provided $700 million in funding for child care from 2005 to 2006.

The funding will be allocated to the provinces and territories based on the existing allocation formula used for the Early Learning and Child Care Bilateral Agreements.

“The availability of affordable, high-quality and flexible child care will be key to ensuring Canadian parents can return to work and our economy can recover from this crisis. The Government of Canada is committed to supporting the child care sector to ensure all Canadian families will have access to the quality child care they need,” Hussein said in a news release.