Winnipeg, MB – Brian Pallister’s Government sat on their hands for three long years as families
struggled to find quality, accessible, reliable childcare.

Here are the facts about Pallister’s failing record on childcare:

• He froze funding for childcare centres for three years throwing the system into crisis –
and has done nothing since 26,000 Manitobans signed a petition calling for the end of the
freeze;
• He made a de facto cut to the subsidy for the most disadvantaged parents for several
years making it harder for those parents to access childcare;
• He let the childcare wait list grow to above 17,000 kids and then hid the wait list from the
public because it was too long;
• He promised 550 home-based day-care spots in his first term – and he didn’t even get
halfway there, missing his target by over 350 spots;
• He tried to cut the inclusion support program – hurting the most vulnerable children who
need the most support.

(Source: Annual Reports, Dept. of Families 2017, 2018; Dept. of Families Statistics; FIPPA)

Pallister’s record on childcare shows how little he cares about working families and how little he values early childhood education – he’s only concerned for those at the top. He’s ignored calls from over 26,000 Manitobans and organizations like the Manitoba Child Care Association to end the freeze for public childcare centres. The lack of action hurt all children in our province and women who are the most likely to be affected by cuts to childcare.

The NDP have a comprehensive plan to invest in childcare for all Manitobans, not just those at
the top.