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There is a lot of talk lately about how the B.C. Teachers' Federation is somehow responsible for this province's day care costs as a result of its fight with the B.C. government over the passing of Bill 12.
I know for many parents in this province that the government's refusal to negotiate with the BCTF has resulted in their unwanted expense of scrambling to find extended day care for their children. And with the Liberals digging in their heels, there seems to be no end in sight. This new cost to parents has been calculated at about $26 million a week by a lawsuit filed against the BCTF in B.C. provincial court.
I believe that Premier Gordon Campbell and his Liberals are responsible for this cost to parents. Why are we being taxed for a service that the Campbell Liberals are no longer providing?
In a financial statement prepared by the B.C. Public Schools Employers and given to Education Minister Shirley Bond, it's estimated that the B.C. government is saving $15 million a day in wages. This amount will soon reach $75 million, if it hasn't already. Why is this money not being earmarked for the parents of this province who need it now as a result of the government's refusal to negotiate with its employees? If they subsidize child care in this province for the $26 million a week that the lawsuit feels they are entitled to, the Liberals would still have $49 million left over to give to school districts. It's about time Campbell and his party cut the parents in this province a break.
- reprinted from Kamloops Daily News