Ottawa has confirmed $153-million in funding for B.C. child-care programs – a commitment whose planned announcement earlier this month was postponed amid federal-provincial tensions over the expansion of the Trans-Mountain pipeline.
On Friday, representatives of the federal and provincial governments held a news conference at a daycare centre in Vancouver to outline the long-awaited agreement, which will see Ottawa help fund child care as the province is launching a decade-long effort to massively expand options for the care of children.
While Ottawa's contribution was detailed in this week's B.C. budget, the event marked the first time that both levels of government had announced the plan, which arises from a 2017 agreement among federal, provincial and territorial ministers to bolster child care.
Ottawa is providing the money over three years. It comes as the provincial NDP government announced $1-billion in child-care spending over the next three years.
A planned Feb. 9 announcement of the federal spending was postponed after federal officials e-mailed their provincial counterparts to ask for the delay.
The delay came as the Alberta government banned imports of B.C. wine because of anger over B.C. moves to subject Kinder Morgan's planned $7.4-billion expansion of the Trans Mountain pipeline between the two provinces to new environmental scrutiny.
On Thursday, the Alberta government called off the ban after the B.C. government said it would launch a constitutional reference case to examine whether it has jurisdiction to limit the expansion of oil transportation – the idea that prompted the wine ban.
During Friday's announcement, the provincial and federal representatives said there was no link between the delay and tensions over Trans Mountain that came to involve B.C., Alberta and the federal government.
Asked about the issue, B.C. Children and Family Development Minister Katrine Conroy said the NDP government has been working on the commitment with its federal counterparts since coming to power last summer.
Jonathan Wilkinson, the federal parliamentary secretary for Catherine McKenna, Minister of the Environment and Climate Change, said "scheduling" forced the previous delay and that the tensions were irrelevant.
"This is a very important issue for the federal government as it is for the government of B.C.," said Mr. Wilkinson, a Vancouver-area MP who was representing the federal government at the news conference. "There are many files on which we are working actively with the government of B.C. This is one of those."
Over three years, the federal child-care funding will be used for measures that include creating 1,370 new child-care spaces, reducing fees and administering low-cost spaces for up to 1,786 children and expanding Indigenous child care.
In Edmonton, Alberta Premier Rachel Notley said that while she doesn't believe British Columbia's legal challenge has merit, her government will be watching it closely.
Ms. Notley said she is not sure the B.C. courts will even entertain making a ruling on the clearly established constitutional rule that the federal government has the final say on what goes into transboundary pipelines.
But she said that if B.C. can't find traction on that issue, it may try a different legal tack and Alberta will be ready to respond. She did not specify the possible options.
Also on Friday, Premier John Horgan said neither Prime Minister Justin Trudeau or Premier Notley should take comfort in B.C. having referred the matter to the courts.
"The people of British Columbia feel profoundly about this project and the depth of concern about it is palatable to anybody who spends any time in the Lower Mainland," Mr. Horgan said during a news conference in Richmond. While the issue is now headed for the courts, the Premier said issues around "social licence" remain regarding the pipeline project.
"We're far from out of the woods on this issue, and I don't say that with any glee. I say it more out of sorrow."
With a file from The Canadian Press
Ian Bailey