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$1200/yr for daycare? On what planet? Ofcourse this money will go to buying other things - boots, coats, food, admission to the Museum of Civilzation - because it won't come close to offsetting the cost of daycare for low income families.
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While it is fairly apparent Scott Reid's comments were a bit insensitive, I think it's pretty obvious the message he was getting across. This $1200 cheque is nothing but an extended baby bonus, essentially a tax cut (a tax cut which is taxed, so a low to middle income family will only see about $900) which provides financial support to allow parents to decide which route they will take regarding their child.
While I understand the Conservatives intentions, this proposal shouldn't be considered anything related to a 'Child-Care Platform', which is what it is being coined as.
If the Federal Government skips the cheque cutting, and allocates the same (or as the Liberals will, greater) assets into national day-care, stay-at-home moms/dads, and especially single parents will be more inclined to seek employment while paying substantially less for child-care.
This $1200 is really just an employment deterrent for some people (not all, but enough).
What do people spend their CTC benefits on anyways? Well, based on my observations from behind the teller wicket for four years, the moderately well-off deposit it to an RESP or a childrens savings account. The less fortunate, the folks who have low to moderate income generally use it to pay their rent, or cash it immediately to be spent on whatever they see fit (childrens clothes, day-care, or if they wish, beer and popcorn). Ultimately, when this $1200 bonus is put in the hands of low income Canadians, I generally agree with the Liberal's position that this is just a cash handout. It provides no real opportunity for child care, it provides a tax break, which is appropriate for some Canadians, but I think the majority of Canadians would benefit from subsidized day-care...
Realistically, though, it's not going to happen anyways. For any of Stephen Harpers proposals to pass, they will need a majority government. The Liberals, NDP and Bloc all stand 180 degrees from the Conservatives, and the latest polls put the Conservatives 24% away from that.
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The problem with the Conservative proposal, and the reason it is dishonest to call it a "child care" program, is that it is designed to benefit those who don't need the money.
The $1200 is taxed at the rate of the lower income earner. This means that it is taxed for a single parent, or for a family in which both parents work, but it is tax-free for a family that can afford to have one parent stay at home.
Taking myself as a concrete example: I would receive $3600 annually, which would not be taxed as my wife does not work. Living in my nice, large, suburban home with kids who don't lack for food, clothes, books, toys, or anything else, I would be free to spend my $3600 as I please. (Notably, when Canada AM interviewed an Ordinary Canadian Mother on this subject, the first thing she thought of was her RRSP.)
Meanwhile, the single mother who bought my old condo would also receive $3600 (although she has two kids, we'll pretend there are three to keep things equal). Unlike me, she would actually need that money, to pay for daycare for her kids so that she can go to her low-paying job, and to supplement her lousy wages. But unlike me, she would have to pay some of that money back in tax.
This "child care" plan, like Stephen Harper's plan to give a tax break to families that can afford hockey equipment, is aimed directly at middle-class voters, whom Harper is courting as his natural constituency.
The Liberal plan for national daycare is half-assed, but at least it serves a purpose other than buying votes. Allowing people -- primarily women -- to get into the workforce, save money, and contribute to the economy is a public good. Subsidized daycare provides a public benefit. It goes along with all that good conservative rhetoric about rising tides and boats.
That's why the Liberals, the NDP, and the Green party all support a national daycare program in some form.
Only the Conservatives offer another plan. It's not a plan at all, as we have seen, but throwing money at your base is easier than saying what Stephen Harper is too chickenshit to say: that he does not support a national child care program, because he does not think government should be involved in child care in any way.
