Steve Ashton vows to bring fight to feds over child care programming

Manitoba NDP leadership candidate Steve Ashton wants to battle the federal government for a national child care program.

The number of kids in Manitoba on wait lists for child care programs has steadily risen in the last few years.

In 2011, 8,171 kids were put on child care wait lists; in 2012, that number grew to 9,435. And a total of 11,476 children were registered on wait lists across the province in 2013.

If chosen to lead the NDP, Ashton said he would fight for a child care program the way the party's forerunners, the CCF, fought for a national medicare program.

Pat Wege, executive director of the Manitoba Child Care Association, said it's great news Ashton is thinking big to pressure the federal government but says it will be difficult to convince Stephen Harper's Conservatives, who have repeatedly said they do not want such a program.

Ashton agreed, however he said he was determined to make this an issue in the upcoming federal election.

Wege said the provincial government has made important steps with three successive commitments to open up more spaces and fund daycare in Manitoba. She said for a program to be totally successful and to get kids off wait lists, the federal government must change its approach and implement a national universal program.

"This has been on and off the table so many times already that some of us have lost track. but this is a lot and it's about time," Wege said.

But Candice Bergen, Minister of State for Social Development, said the federal government stands by its monthly child-care allowance for parents.

“We trust parents to do what is best for their families, that is why we introduced and enhanced the Universal Child Care Benefit (UCCB), which gives parents choice in the type of child care that works best for their situation," said Bergen, who went on to criticize Thomas Mulcair and the federal NDP's child care plan.

"Whereas Mr. Mulcair’s $5 billion dollar government-run one-size-fits-all daycare proposal would only benefit a small segment of families, our expanded Universal Child Care Benefit will put money back in the pockets of every single family in Canada with children under the age of 18.”

Ashton promises 3,000 more child care spaces

Ashton has promised to add 3,000 child care spaces over and above the 5,000 the NDP promised in spring 2014 to pursue.

But that plan requires millions of federal dollars Ashton hasn't secured.

What he did secure, however, was an endorsement of his candidacy from fellow MLA Christine Melnick.

The NDP leadership vote will take place at the party's annual convention March 8. The other declared candidates include current leader and Premier Greg Selinger, as well as former health minister Theresa Oswald.