Minister vows long-term child care funding as study details fast-rising fees
Posted December 11, 2016 11:45 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
OTTAWA (NEWS1130) – A new study suggests that the cost of child care fees in some of Canada’s biggest cities has skyrocketed over the last three years, rising an average of more than twice the rate of inflation over the same time period.
In a study to be released Monday, the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives says the average monthly cost for full-time child care has gone up by more than eight per cent across the country over the last three years.
Much of that is the result of Quebec’s decision to introduce a sliding scale for fees based on income in 2015, which saw average prices jump by 18 per cent, but still remain by far the lowest in the country.
Taking Quebec out of the equation, costs across the country have increased by more than six per cent, more than double the average rate of inflation of 2.5 per cent over that time, the study shows.
What accounts for the increase in fees outpacing the cost of living has baffled researchers who have looked at the issue for years.
Martha Friendly, executive director of the Childcare Resource and Research Unit, says bringing down the cost of child care in the rest of Canada would mean either cutting costs and staff or increasing government funding.
