Publication: National Post
Section: Editorials
Page: A20
**Excerpt**
On the issue of child care the Conservatives have set themselves apart. Stephen Harper's proposal is a welcome antidote to the Liberals' big-government approach to a national daycare program.
Far from being unsympathetic to the needs of working parents, the Conservatives are in fact proposing to spend more on child care than the Liberals. But rather than the heavy-handed approach taken by Paul Martin's government, which will see $5-billion transferred to the provinces over five years in return for the creation of regulated daycare spots, the Tories would leave child-care decisions up to parents. Under their plan, parents would receive an annual allowance of $1,200 per child under age six (on top of current benefits) that could be spent on whatever form of care best suits their kids' needs best -- be it formal daycare, babysitting or stay-at-home parenting.
Equally laudable is the Conservative plan to increase the number of daycare spots not by building government-run centres, but by offering $250-million in tax credits to companies that build daycare centres to accommodate employees' children. As Conservative child care critic Rona Ambrose has pointed out, "The infrastructure part is so expensive, we have to look at ways to bring other partners in the private and public sector on board."
The Conservative plan is a mild deviation from the child-care alternative they previously proposed, which would have involved a tax credit rather than an allowance. But the basic principle of parental choice is the same. The Tories clearly recognize that every family's circumstances are different, and that parents understand better than government officials what arrangements best suit their young children.
Mr. Harper's party has properly set itself apart from the Liberals on this important issue, as he did last week on the GST. Keep going, Mr. Harper. You're on the right track. And Canadians are better off for having clear choices to make come election day.
