REGINA – The New Democrats' latest efforts opposing the province's implementation of $10 a day child care was upstaged Monday by news that the YMCA of Regina was distancing themselves from a recent NDP letter on the topic.
YMCA of Regina sent out a media statement Monday morning, claiming it wasn't consulted before being mentioned in the NDP's correspondence to the government of Canada on the child care issue.
In a July 2 letter sent to federal Minister of Jobs and Families Patty Hajdu, the NDP had called on the Feds to "undertake a thorough review of Saskatchewan's implementation of the Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care Agreement — and intervene if violations are confirmed."
As examples, they pointed to fee increases coming from the YMCA. The NDP correspondence stated that "families served by the YMCA of Regina and Moose Jaw received nearly identical letters outlining substantial new fees that will take effect September 1, 2026… "
"The organization states that it has received approval from Saskatchewan's Ministry of Education to introduce additional fees as per the July 1 policy changes to offset 'current and ongoing operational deficits.' Taken together, these changes add hundreds of dollars annually to the cost of childcare for Saskatchewan families, and are not being presented as optional enhancements or premium services."
In response, the YMCA of Regina said in a statement it "was not consulted or informed of the letter to which we are referred, either in advance or after its release to the Government of Canada."
As for its letters to families about fee increases, the YMCA said this “was neither a political nor a partisan statement.”
“Along with providing families 60-days’ notice of their childcare fees, the letter was shared with a broad network of stakeholders to ensure alignment and that these additional fees remained within the scope of permitted fees and were reviewed by the Ministry of Education. This approach of implementing additional fees is intended to help bridge the gap between available funding and the current and forecasted financial challenges and deficits our organization faces. While other operators in the childcare sector have or may be considering similar approaches, this decision was based solely on our organization’s financial position.”
In response to the YMCA statement, NDP child care critic Joan Pratchler told reporters Monday that the NDP had gotten copies of those letters “from Facebook and social media and families have been sending those to us all along. So we're reporting what's already been public already.”
“The fees are going to go up and that's hard for people to be able to manage. I mean, we're in an affordability crisis and that's what they have to do in order to make ends meet and provide child care the best they can. So, here we are.”
The back and forth between the NDP and YMCA seemed to take the wind out of the sails of a launch of a new effort by the NDP and the Canadian Union for Public Employees against child care funding changes that took effect effect July 1 as part of the province's new child care agreement with the federal government.
At the Legislature Monday, Pratchler said they were launching a website that “allows Saskatchewan people to send a message directly to their Sask Party MLA and to the failing Minister for Childcare, Everett Hindley, and to (Premier) Scott Moe, to demand that these harmful changes be reversed.”
Kent Peterson, President of CUPE Saskatchewan, was at the news conference and called on Premier Moe to “cancel his devastating cuts right now.”
“Saskatchewan parents who once enjoyed $10 a day child care will soon find the cost of childcare to once again be out of reach for their families."
"Ever-increasing enrolment fees, administrative charges, and fundraising fees will become the norm in Saskatchewan — the only options available to childcare centres desperately trying to stay open under the yoke of Scott Moe's devastating cuts," Peterson said.
Pratchler accused Premier Moe of not listening to concerns that the changes would “eliminate flexible childcare spaces, increase costs for families,” and “put additional pressures on legacy providers.”
“Now that these changes have taken effect, we're seeing exactly the backlash of these consequences that providers and families have predicted… People are told that they are losing childcare spots for their little ones. Employers are losing workers. Communities are on the edge of what this tsunami is bringing or taking away in its aftermath. The federal childcare agreement was supposed to make childcare more affordable and accessible, and instead the Sask Party is making it more expensive and harder to access.”
Province responds
In a statement Monday afternoon, the government noted Saskatchewan was "one of the first jurisdictions to lower child care fees to $10 / day, a full three years ahead of the original target date. The province has added thousands of new child care spaces since 2021 and continues to support $10 a day child care to help families access affordable child care, achieving 92 per cent of the space target as of March 31, 2026."
The province said it "remains committed to affordable child care for Saskatchewan families," and to protect and sustain a strong Early Learning and Child Care system are "shifting from rapid expansion to a focus on stabilization and sustainability for the operators and families."
"The July 1st changes are a result of ongoing engagement with the child care providers through broad sector-wide committee meetings, best practices across the nation and individual discussions with the providers. We continue to openly engage and follow up with operators to answer questions and provide information specific to their operations."
