To the Editor,
Last week in the legislature, Education Minister George Abbott said that the April 13 B.C. Supreme Court decision “doesn’t oblige a discussion around costs; it obliges a discussion.”
What the court decision does say is that the sections of Bill 28 (2002) that removed class size and composition limits are “unconstitutional and invalid.”
The Treasury Board reported that $275 million was saved in each of the last nine school years as a result of the removal of these provisions.
Students who were in kindergarten in 2002 when Christy Clark introduced the legislation will enter Grade 10 in September. They have never known what it is like to be in a fully funded school. Sadly, it is students with special needs who have been affected the most.
Kids have waited 10 years. They should not have to wait any longer.
It is not enough that Minister Abbott feels obligated to have a discussion.
After a decade of stealing from our kids, Abbott’s government should feel obligated to talk about money.
Kip Wood
Nanaimo District Teachers’ Association