Quebec daycare associations say looming cuts worse than expected

Associations representing Quebec's public and subsidized private daycares have walked away from talks with the Quebec government, saying the cuts they're facing are muchworse than they expected.

Daycare operators say they were told the government planned to cut $120 millionfrom their budgets.

Now they say they've calculated the cuts will be closer to $320 million, which represents close to 5,000 jobs,according to the Association Qubcoise des Centres de la Petite Enfance (AQCPE) the association representing non-profit, publicly funded daycares.

I cannot imagine what the consequences will be,- Samir Alahmad, president of the Private Daycare Association of Quebec

"It's between 20 and 25 per centof the educators in public and private subsidized daycares," said Louis Sencal, the AQCPE'spresident and director general.

"The government has increasedfees for daycares. They want parents to pay morebutare removing their educators," Sencal said. "It's totally unacceptable."

Sencal saidthe government did not present them with a firm figure, addingdaycare representatives had to calculate the cuts based on government formulas.

Quebec's FamiliesMinister Francine Charbonneaudeclined to put a number on the cuts earlier Thursday, but aspokesperson later confirmed the original $120-million figure to Radio-Canada, saying the cuts would take effect over twoyears.

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New calculation

Earlier Thursday,GinaGasparini, a spokeswoman for the AQCPE,explained thatthe government has ranked each daycare by determiningthe amount of money spent on each child.

It then determined the average amount spent based on calculating that average from thelowest-spending one-third of provincial daycare centres.

All daycare centres are now to befunded based on that calculation.

"The problem with that is that they don't take into consideration why those small number of CPEsarespending so much less than the others," saidGasparini.

"There could be circumstances that explain it that are not applicable to everybody else."

A previous meeting with the government did not end up as a dialogue, saidSamirAlahmad,the president of the Private Daycare Association of Quebec.

He worries staff will have to be let go as a result of the cuts.

"A lotofdaycaresare cutting here and there.Alotofdaycaresare in bad financial situations," saidAlahmad.

"Can you imagine now with [$120 million more in cuts]? I cannot imagine what the consequences will be."

Parents concerned

Families Minister Charbonneauhasnot said how the government expects the daycares to tighten their belts.

"Why is it...some people have deficits, and some people have more money? We have to think about this," she said.

"It's the money of every Quebecer that we are giving to make sure that the service is given to families of Quebec."

Stephanie Lemay, whose two children attendthe same CPE in St. Bruno, said the government's focus on numbers is trumping children's needs.

"They talk about productivity, but we talk about the child," she said. "We're not talkingabout abig machine or big business."