“With five weeks left to end the disruption in the lives of B.C. families, the B.C. Liberals are preparing for failure by announcing a rebate for parents instead of focusing on getting kids back in classrooms,” said New Democrat education spokesperson Rob Fleming.
VANCOUVER – BC Liberals’ $40 a day bribe for parents brought the ire of the BC Teachers Federation and the opposition New Democrats.
The Liberal government announced this week that BC parents will get $40 per day for every child under 13 in the public school system if the education labour dispute continues in September.
Finance Minister Mike de Jong made the surprise announcement this morning, saying parents will be able to register to receive the money online, with that cash arriving in October.
Nicole Makohoniuk with the BC Parent Advisory Councils says it will provide relief to parents. “It would cover quite a bit of their child care costs. This would be really good news for them — a very exciting prospect for them”
But the NDP slammed the Liberals, saying the government has no interest in getting kids back into classrooms and bringing stability back to our schools by September.
“With five weeks left to end the disruption in the lives of B.C. families, the B.C. Liberals are preparing for failure by announcing a rebate for parents instead of focusing on getting kids back in classrooms,” said New Democrat education spokesperson Rob Fleming.
“The Liberal government’s focus should be entirely on getting our schools running again and improving learning for our kids, and every penny saved from the school shutdown should stay in our public education system to make that happen,” said Fleming.
“This announcement from the government to strip education funding from BC students is a blatant and divisive attempt to prolong disruption in BC schools. This scheme will not help improve class sizes, increase support for children with special needs, or provide more one-on-one time for all students. It is my hope that the government will redirect its energies into reaching an agreement with BC teachers through mediation this summer, said BCTF’s Jim Iker.
“Parents just want to see their kids back in school. They have already had their lives, and the lives of their kids, turned upside down by this dispute. Now, the B.C. Liberals are showing them that they have given up entirely on getting kids back in their classrooms by Sept. 2.”
Fleming added that the government could potentially spend millions just to set up and administer the rebate program.
“Parents just want to see their kids back in school. They have already had their lives, and the lives of their kids, turned upside down by this dispute. Now, the B.C. Liberals are showing them that they have given up entirely on getting kids back in their classrooms by Sept. 2.”
