PC leader wants relief fund to help parents with emergency child care
HALIFAX, NS – Progressive Conservative Jamie Baillie says everyday parents who have been put out by Stephen McNeil’s outrageous student lockout deserve extra help as they seek emergency childcare options just before the Christmas season.
The Progressive Conservative leader is demanding Premier Stephen McNeil create a special relief fund to provide parents with financial assistance for childcare expenses due to the Liberals’ decision to shut down schools across the province.
“Stephen McNeil’s irresponsible decision to lock kids out f school will be the focal point of debate for weeks and months to come,” said Baillie. “What’s important now is that families have the resources they need to care for their children. The Holidays are already expensive and stressful enough. Parents don’t need more to worry about.”
Baillie says there’s precedent for his proposal. During the British Columbia teachers’ dispute in 2014, the government offered parents $40 per day as part of a Temporary Education Support Program.
“Progressive Conservatives understand the added costs the McNeil Liberals have saddled families with,” said Baillie. “While the fund being proposed today cannot replace the time lost in classrooms, it is one small step to lessen the burden parents face during this trying time.”
The Progressive Conservatives vigorously oppose Stephen McNeil’s student lockout and will continue to fight for meaningful classroom reform.