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Gerry Reid, Opposition Leader and MHA for the District of Twillingate - Fogo,
says now that government has an improved financial situation due to soaring
oil prices and the recent revenue sharing agreement negotiated with Ottawa,
it should move forward with the elimination of school fees for the K-12
system. "School fees have placed an unnecessary burden on the parents of
school children in this province and it is time for the Minister of
Education to deal with the problem," said Reid. "While we must recognize
that the elimination of school fees has a certain cost attached to it, we
must consider the many positive benefits of investing in the K-12 school
system.
"The Premier has stated publicly that government will realize
approximately $400 million in surplus this year due to the high price of
oil. It would only take a modest investment from this surplus to deal with
this serious issue in our school system. While fiscal health is an important
factor for a successful economy, a balanced approach must be taken to
address the social needs in order to build a sustainable workforce and
community for the future.
"When students return to school this September, parents will be faced
with the cost of new clothing, footwear, backpacks, supplies and other items
for their children. There is no need to further stress parents and children
with the burden of school fees.
"Government released a discussion paper on school fees last year as a
means of legitimizing this unnecessary tax that places a burden on parents,
especially in low income households. While school fees currently provide
essential supplies and services in our school system, government could
easily replace this user-fee system by increasing government funding to
school boards and making the education system free as it was always
intended.
"While Minister of Education, I announced in September of 2003 that
school fees would be eliminated in this province because I recognized the
financial burden faced by parents of school children in the province. I am
now calling on the Williams government to recognize the need to eliminate
school fees and move forward with a plan of action that would see changes
made for September."
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