A more flexible daycare system could better meet the needs of parents and reduce waitlists.
August 11, 2026
Quebec’s daycare system turns 30 next year, and in the nearly three decades since its launch it has yet to live up to its lofty, founding promises of offering universal and equitable access to daycare spaces. Wait lists remain long, and many parents seeking help with their childcare costs are shut out of funding because their preferred method of childcare is not supported by the government.
“Although ‘the right to high-quality, personalized educational childcare’ is enshrined in law, the system has never been able to offer a spot to all parents who want one for their child, and more than 30,000 children are currently on a waiting list,” said Étienne-Alexandre Beauregard, a researcher at Cardus and author of a new report Neither Universal nor Equitable which looks at Quebec’s daycare system.
The findings of this report, which considers the current state of Quebec’s daycare system and the potential impact of alternative policies, are important for all Canadians, as the Quebec daycare model was the basis for the Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care (CWELCC), somewhat misleadingly referred to as the “$10-a-day daycare program”.
What the almost three decades of Quebec’s réseau des services de garde éducatifs (Educational Childcare Program) have shown us is that the inability to reach these goals is not one of funding, of human resources, or lack of political will: it’s a structural flaw based on the model of funding daycare centres instead of parents.
The government subsidy varies from approximately $33 per day for the tax credit for unsubsidized childcare centres to $70 per day for a space in a CPE (Centre de la petite enfance – Early Childhood Centre) paid directly to the daycare. However, a parent whose child does not attend any recognized childcare centre receives no financial support while contributing to the subsidy system through their taxes. This means nearly one in five children in Quebec aged one to four receives no government financial support for their childcare because they are not enrolled in a recognized daycare program – whether because they are on a waitlist and can’t secure a space, or because they prefer an alternative option like a home daycare or staying home with their children.
To move toward a more equitable system, Quebec could look to Finland, which subsidizes childcare services but also offers allowances to parents who do not wish to, or cannot, place their child in a daycare facility. The Finnish program supports all parents regardless of their childcare choice, whether that involves remaining at home, working part-time, or working full-time.
A 2021 survey by the Angus Reid Institute in partnership with Cardus shows that half of Quebecers would prefer direct funding for parents, rather than relying on daycare services.
“The shortcomings of Quebec’s daycare system, and consequently of CWELCC, have very real consequences for children’s well-being and parents’ quality of life,” added Beauregard. “One of the main objectives of our childcare policy should be to help working parents do what they tell us they want to do: spend more time with their families, thereby promoting family well-being and supporting their children’s growth and development.”
MEDIA INQUIRIES
Étienne-Alexandre Beauregard
1613.241.4500 x 514
eabeauregard@cardus.ca
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