The government's plan to introduce 20 free hours of weekly child care has hit a major stumbling block with the Early Childhood Council urging its members to snub the scheme.
ONE News has obtained an internal memo sent out from the council to its 1000 member centres which says the government's scheme is "the biggest threat to the quality of early childhood education in our generation".
The two page internal memo also says educational programmes will be cut and teachers will be laid off. "For this reason we're calling for it to be resisted by our entire sector," the memo states.
The council represents 1000 centres caring for more than 50,000 children - more than half of the 92,000 three and four year olds the government is targeting with the policy. It says the government subsidy is just not enough to cover costs.
The government has been working hard to promote the free scheme and desperately needs centres to opt in if it is to work.
National Party MP Paula Bennett says the memo is no surprise.
"We've been telling this government for so long that to offer 20 free hours centres are going to have to cut quality and parents will be appalled," she says.
But Education Minister Steve Maharey maintains the scheme will work because a significant of centres have already indicated they will opt in.
"It would appear for this particular group there is a philosophical debate going on inside the organisation with the majority of people wanting to go with the policy and a small group not wanting to go," he says.
Just who is in and who is out will not be known for sure before the end of the year.
