Nova Scotia fees for licensed daycares to drop another 25 per cent on Dec. 31
Daycare fees are to drop a further 25 per cent in Nova Scotia beginning Dec. 31, under a $605-million funding agreement between the federal and provincial governments signed in 2021.
The new drop in fees builds on a 25 per cent reduction that took effect April 1, Education and Early Childhood Development Minister Becky Druhan said Monday. With the latest cut, Druhan told reporters, fees will be 50 per cent lower, on average, compared to 2019 for infants, toddlers and preschoolers.
"For many families, child care is the top household expense, equal to or more than rent or a mortgage payment," she said during the announcement at a daycare in Nova Scotia's Annapolis Valley. "Now more than ever, Nova Scotian families need affordability."
Druhan said parents with an infant in licensed daycare will pay $23 less per day, or about $6,000 less a year, compared with 2019, while those with a toddler and preschooler in child care will pay $36 less per day, or about $9,000 less a year, compared with the same period. As well, about 3,000 families who use the province's child-care subsidy program will see their fees reduced to zero, the minister added.
The latest cut in fees will cost $76 million and will be funded by an envelope of $605 million that was set up under the joint provincial-federal child-care agreement. Nova Scotia's deal with Ottawa is to create 9,500 daycare spaces costing an average of $10 a day by March 2026.
In June, the province said 1,500 new licensed early learning and child-care spaces would be created by the end of this year, but Druhan said Monday that only 1,100 of the new spaces would be available as scheduled, with hundreds more to come over the winter.
Karina Gould, federal minister of families, children and social development, was on hand for the announcement, which she described as good for the province's economy. Gould pointed out that Quebec has had universal child care for 25 years.
"(Quebec) has the highest proportion of women with children under the age of four in the workforce in the country," she said.
Julie MacNabb, a parent whose child has attended the Auburn, N.S., daycare, where Monday's announcement was made, said the fee reduction is about creating equity for children and families. McNabb said she recently returned to work following a maternity leave.
"Some women don't have that opportunity; they are leaving their jobs and they are having to reduce their hours," she said. "Having quality, affordable child care gives us the opportunity to contribute to our local labour market."
The funding announced Monday is in addition to an early childhood educator wage package announced last month that increased wages by about 30 per cent, at a cost of about $100 million a year.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 28, 2022.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Federal government grants B.C.'s request to recriminalize hard drugs in public spaces
The federal government is granting British Columbia's request to recriminalize hard drugs in public spaces, nearly two weeks after the province asked to end its pilot project early over concerns of public drug use.
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
Stormy Daniels took the witness stand Tuesday at Donald Trump's hush money trial, describing for jurors a sexual encounter the porn actor says she had with him in 2006 that resulted in her being paid off to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
MPs agree Canadian gov't should improve new disability benefit
The federal government needs to safeguard the incoming Canada Disability Benefit from clawbacks and do more to ensure it actually meets the stated aim of lifting people living with disabilities out of poverty, MPs from all parties agree.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
CFL suspends Argos QB Chad Kelly at least nine games following investigation
The CFL suspended Toronto Argonauts quarterback Chad Kelly for at least nine regular-season games Tuesday following its investigation into a lawsuit filed by a former strength-and-conditioning coach against both the player and club.
Boy Scouts of America changing name for first time in 114 years, aiming for inclusivity
The Boy Scouts of America is changing its name for the first time in its 114-year history and will become Scouting America. It's a significant shift as the organization emerges from bankruptcy following a flood of sexual abuse claims and seeks to focus on inclusion.
opinion Tom Mulcair: Trudeau's handling of Poilievre's 'wacko' House turfing a clear sign of Liberal desperation
When Speaker Greg Fergus tossed out Pierre Poilievre from the House last week, "those of us who have experience as parliamentarians simply couldn't believe our eyes," writes former NDP leader Tom Mulcair in his column for CTVNews.ca
New charges for Ont. woman who previously admitted to defrauding doulas
The Brantford, Ont. woman who was previously sentenced to house arrest after admitting to deceiving doulas has been charged again in connection to a new victim.