MACDONALD: APPLICATION PROCESS FOR CHILDCARE CENTRE GRANTS UNFAIR
Date: Friday October 30, 2009

(Halifax, NS) - Liberal Community Services Critic Manning MacDonald is
calling on the NDP government to be more transparent and accountable
when it comes to funding for childcare centres.

“The Minister of Community Services refuses to say why she announced
funding for 12 childcare centres prior to the application deadline,”
says MacDonald. “This action would have disqualified organizations
from receiving funding if they applied after the decisions were made.”


The NDP government announced renovation and expansion funding for 12
childcare centres on October 27, three days before applications to
access the fund were due. The initial call for applications to access
the fund was made through a government press release on September 18,
announcing a deadline of October 30. The matter was brought to
MacDonald’s attention by a childcare centre in Cape Breton which did
not receiving funding.

“If the Minister has a reason for closing the application process
early, she should be upfront with Nova Scotians,” says MacDonald,
noting that he has heard from a childcare centre in Cape Breton that did
not receive funding. “It’s unfair to expedite this process, at the
risk of excluding eligible daycares, so the Minister can make an
announcement at her political convenience.”

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