Thread by @pancholi_rakhi

The UCP’s failure to get a federal agrmt for $10/day child care signed before the election - something 8 other jurisdictions managed to do - is an epic failure of leadership by @jkenney.

And let’s be clear - this was the intent all along. 🧵#ableg

From the beginning, @jkenney deliberately mischaracterized the federal funding, falsely claiming it was only for “9-5, urban, institutionalized, union-run” child care & excluded for-profit providers. None of that was true. And they knew that. #ableg

cbc.ca/1.5995647

When Albertans overwhelmingly expressed they desperately wanted & needed $10/day child care, they backed down a little and had @rebeccakschulz peddle out some word-salad stmts about being willing to negotiate. But that wasn’t true either. #ableg

Instead, they quietly rolled out an RFP for an analysis on increasing subsidies for child care, which is not the same as a universal $10/day child care program. The expected due date for the report was Sept 20, 2021. Which means they never planned to sign a deal before that.

https://twitter.com/lindsaytedds/status/1418630300465127425

Then they tried to pass off the renewal of an existing one-year bilateral agrmt for $45 million w/ the feds as some kind of breakthrough. It isn’t. #ableg edmontonjournal.com/news/politics/…

They then feigned outrage Quebec signed a deal w/ no conditions because - guess what? - Quebec’s child care system already meets the conditions. Average child care fees below $10/day in licensed child care. A far cry from what we have in Alberta, esp after 2 years of the UCP.

And in their outrage, @rebeccakschulz admitted that when she said they’d been “negotiating” w/ the feds, it meant they’d *twice* put forward a position they knew would not be accepted. Because they refused to commit to lowering fees for parents & supporting licensed child care.

After pretending they’d been negotiating in good faith all along, it was revealed that the UCP only expressed general interest in meeting the conditions of the funding just over a week ago. #ableg

edmonton.ctvnews.ca/alberta-pushes…

edmonton.ctvnews.ca/alberta-pushes…

In the meantime, eight - eight! - other provinces & territories managed to secure an agrmt to bring substantial funding to their economies & families for $10/day child care. This includes @jkenney’s buddy Scott Moe in Saskatchewan, frequent foe of the fed govt. #ableg

The Alberta NDP did the work for the UCP back in July outlining the terms of an agrmt that would mean $3.4 billion in fed funding over 5 years, bring down fees by 50% by 2022 & to $10/day by 2026. #ableg

https://twitter.com/pancholi_rakhi/status/1418716200041914377

BC - the 1st province to sign an agrmt - will begin to receive billions in fed funding in a few weeks.

But Alberta? At this point, we’d be lucky if it happens before Christmas (and that’s only if the UCP actually sign a deal). #ableg

Every single day the UCP has delayed is passing up $1.1 million in investments in our economy & Alberta families. We are now surrounded by provinces that are on their way to $10/day child care, making Alberta a less attractive place for families. #ableg

Alberta families are losing an avg $800/month in savings on child care w/ the UCP’s delays. Our early childhood educator workforce has been devastated. Children have fewer quality early learning opportunities. #ableg

cbc.ca/news/canada/ed…

And at the same time, child care centres that serve the most vulnerable children and families in our province - the ones the UCP claim they care about - are shutting down because the UCP ended the $25/day child care program. #ableg

https://twitter.com/pancholi_rakhi/status/1421262547185852416

The UCP have created this mess and the failure to reach a deal with the federal govt by now to make a transformational investment in our economy and families rests 100% on @jkenney. We always knew politics & ideology means more to him than Albertans. This is the proof. #ableg