“Especially in these uncertain economic times, no government should become a burden to society. Making childcare less affordable will be creating such a burden,” said Clr Chiang Lim.

 

Parramatta City Council recently began a review of its childcare costs and fees, revealing an operational loss and deficit of $473,655. Parramatta City Council provides childcare currently at $62 per child per day. It has recommended a new fee of $74 per child per day in order for Council to achieve a cost neutral result. A simple CPI increase of the fee to $65 per child per day will result in an operational loss and deficit of $384,994.

 

“I realise that this operational loss and deficit has been paid for by the many thousands of ratepayers who do not use Council’s childcare centres. But with that attitude, we should stop funding public schools because of the other families who only use private schools for their children don’t directly benefit from public schools,” said Clr Lim.

 

“The focus instead must be on protecting subsidised childcare services for those with genuine needs, improve the childcare system as a whole to make it more equitable, and at the same time help Council reduce its financial losses to as near zero as possible,” said Clr Lim.

 

Parramatta City Council will be debating this issue again in late May 2009. Discussions already put forward by Clr Lim includes means-testing of families, prioritising children placement on the basis of local residency, commercialising some (and not all) Council childcare centres as profit centres which will then subsidise other Council childcare centres, leveraging state and federal support, and also creating new planning and other Council incentives to significantly expand the quantum of affordable childcare places in the near future.

 

“Parramatta must become a pro-family city, and I am convinced Australians are fair-minded to support subsidised childcare and childcare reform that will support young families in genuine need,” said Clr Lim.

 

There exists a two year waiting list of 357 children for Parramatta City Council’s childcare services.