A national daycare program to date has created only a fraction of 276,000 spaces promised under a $30 billion subsidy, says a Department of Social Development briefing note. The department acknowledged the daycare system is short thousands of workers who left for higher paying jobs.

“Demand for child care has been increasing as parent fees decline,” said the Briefing Binder. Cabinet in 2021 proposed billions in five-year subsidies on a promise of $10-a day fees and “250,000 new high quality child care spaces” by 2026.

To date only 80,127 new spaces have opened, said Briefing Binder. The department did not estimate how many parents were actually receiving $10 daycare. The system itself is short thousands of workers, wrote the department.

“The employment level am