But with full-day kindergarten, the initiative at the heart of the early learning plan, Mr. McGuinty has found his sweet spot – a policy that he desperately wants to be remembered for, and one that future governments will find very difficult to make Ontarians forget.
"It's not the only test," Mr. McGuinty said in an interview last month. "But one important test of public policy is, do I think that anybody would seek to undo this. I find it hard to see somebody seeking to undo this."
He has a point, although it's open for debate whether that's a question of public policy or public opinion.
It remains to be seen, a long ways down the road, whether the early education gurus Mr. McGuinty cited yesterday (among them Fraser Mustard and Margaret McCain) are correct that putting four- and five-year-olds in school for the entire day will pave the way for a brighter future. What's clearer is that it will make the lives of many working parents a great deal easier, and that very few of them are going to be clamouring for the government to make their lives harder again.
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