B.C. Premier Faces Backlash Over Use of $10-a-Day Child Care

B.C. NDP Leader David Eby is defending his family's enrollment in the province's $10-a-day child-care program amid criticism from the B.C. Conservatives. Opponents argue that Eby's "wealthy family" should not benefit from a program that many low-income families cannot access, CBC News reports.

According to CBC News, the B.C. Conservatives highlighted Eby's premier compensation for 2025 to 2026, which exceeded $226,000. Margareta Dovgal, the B.C. Conservative candidate for Vancouver-Yaletown, described the situation as "shocking" given that hundreds of thousands of residents face expensive child care costs. The Conservatives are seeking clarification on whether Eby's donations to the facility were used as tax write-offs and have requested proof of the value of those donations.

Eby stated on X that one of his children was already attending a center when it became a $10-a-day site. He explained that his family chose to donate the difference between the previous cost and the subsidized rate to the facility to support other families in the community. Eby indicated his family would make a similar donation for their youngest child at the same center, though he declined to specify the donation amounts during a Tuesday news conference.

Provincial government data cited by CBC News indicates the $10-a-day program is operated by independent businesses, and spaces are automatically converted to the program once a center is approved. Sharon Gregson of the Coalition of Child Care Advocates of B.C. told CBC's BC Today that approximately 10 percent of the province's licensed spots—about 18,000 spaces—are part of the program. While Gregson argued against income-testing, Hamish Telford, a political science professor at the University of the Fraser Valley, noted that the situation creates "poor optics" as it appears the privileged are receiving special treatment.