Recommitting to $10 a Day Child Care — Standing Committee on Policy and Strategic Priorities, February 25, 2026

Motion 6 Carried

Moved by Sean Orr

Summary

Proposed by Councillor Orr to recommit the city to $10-a-day child care, including directing staff to track lost non-profit child care spaces, prioritizing city-owned and non-profit facilities over private commercial leases, and pursuing UBCM advocacy.
Speakers highlighted a 15,000-space shortfall, the province's recent three-year pause on new $10-a-day enrollments, and specific cases where child care commitments in neighbourhood plans (e.g., Joyce-Collingwood) were not fulfilled in recent rezonings.
Councillor Klassen introduced a strike-and-replace amendment narrowing the motion to an advocacy focus: calling on the province to reaffirm its $10-a-day commitment, establish a clear timeline for resuming expansion, and directing the mayor to write to the Premier and Minister of Education and Child Care.
Councillors Bly and Maloney opposed the amendment, arguing it dropped valuable operational elements (e.g., tracking lost spaces, protecting non-profit spaces) and that advocacy through multiple channels, including UBCM, should not be removed.
Supporters of the amendment said the most urgent need was to pressure the province on funding, as without provincial operating dollars, land-use measures alone are insufficient.
The strike-and-replace amendment carried with Councillors Bly and Maloney opposed; the amended motion then passed.