Rethinking the Welfare State: The prospects for ... - e-Library

Rethinking the selfare state 126
Equality and social solidarity
A final rationale for intervention relates to those benefits discussed in subsequent
chapters in connection with the “citizenship” model of primary and secondary education
(social solidarity). Universal access is of course fundamentally necessary in order to
generate an engaged and active citizenry. In this respect, the ends of distributional equity
and equality of opportunity are also obviously well served when early childhood
development is encouraged across the population. “For children, the key equity argument
relates to providing children with an equal start in life, by ensuring that they enter school
ready to learn.” 34
Modes of government intervention: problems in the present system
Cleveland and Colley identify five general categories of child care provision:
kindergarten, regulated child care, cash benefits paid to parents, support services and
unregulated child care. 35 As indicated earlier, in the United States and Canada,
government intervention in child care is fairly shallow. By and large, the costs of child
care are remitted to parents, with modest means-tested subsidies being conferred on some
families. In the United States, the largest source of federal funding to child care is the
child care expense tax credit whereby parents may receive between 20 and 30 percent of
their expenditures on child care up to a maximum of $2,400 per child (maximum $4,800
total per family). 36 Additionally, the first $5,000 of employer-provided child care is not
considered a taxable benefit. 37 For particularly needy families, the federal Head Start
program is designed to provide child care services. The majority of child care costs,
however, are left to parents. In Canada, the federal government expends roughly $600
million per year on child care, about half of which is administered by the provinces. The
other $315 million goes toward the child care expense tax deduction of up to $7,000 per
child for the lower-paid parent. 38 The provinces, by contrast, allocate most of their child
care resources to needy families as targeted subsidies. 39 Quebec, somewhat anomalously
in North America, offers a public $7 a day child care service to all children aged 0–4,
with reductions down to $0 for low-income families. 40
Internationally, the breadth and quality of child care services is superior to that
available in North America. Many European countries guarantee full public child care for
children aged one and up, with parental contributions based on income until mandatory
school age (at between 4 and 6 years of age). 41 The United Kingdom has focused on
support for low-income families, offering “Sure Start” public day care for needy children
from birth to age 3. 42 Belgium and Australia employ demand-side subsidies, but to very
different degrees. In Australia, child care from birth to age 4 is privately delivered with
voucher support from the government, but crippled by low funding and low enrollment. 43
Belgium employs demand-side subsidies for ages 1–2½, followed by universal access to
public pre-schools from 2½ onwards. 44
There has been a great deal of debate—in both political and scholarly arenas—
concerning the reform of child care service delivery and funding. Criticisms of the status
quo generally focus on two fundamental aspects of the current regimes—accessibility
(including financial accessibility) and quality. 45 These two concerns appear to cut across
methods of child care service provision. Nor are quality and accessibility problems