Excerpts from press release: During this election campaign, considerable debate has erupted around how best to support the health and well-being of Canadian families and how they care for their children. The good news is that the circumstances and needs of the nation's parents and children have been high on the radar during a federal campaign. ... The end result is that the institution most Canadians tell us is more important to them than anything else winds up being used and abused in the ongoing scrum of political, ideological and economic spin wars that, in the end, have little to do with the day-to-day needs and hopes of families. ... The answers to the Vanier Institute for the Family survey questions communicate that the way Canadians actually experience decisions around raising their children is anything but straightforward. Many working parents said they would like to stay at home to raise their young children if they could afford to. At the same time, many 'stay at home mothers' said they would like a part-time job. ... This survey asked enough questions to demonstrate that most Canadians already have a far more sophisticated and more realistic appreciation of the circumstances and needs of Canada's families than are reflected in the limited choices they have been hearing from the campaign trail. ...