Students Pay For B.C. Liberals’ Lies As Funding Slashed For Parent Advisory Councils
VICTORIA— News that funding for Parent Advisory Councils is being slashed in half just as students return to the classroom is another blow to families already feeling betrayed by the B.C. Liberal government, New Democrats said today.
Robin Austin
“Cuts to Parent Advisory Councils will hit schools in low income neighbourhoods the hardest,” said New Democrat education critic Robin Austin . “This back-to-school budget bombshell will slam schools that were counting on these dollars the most. At-risk students and their families shouldn’t have to pay for the B.C. Liberals’ budget lies.”
Earlier today, Education Minister Margaret MacDiarmid told the media that PACs could expect to see their gaming grants slashed in half. Austin noted that PACs use gaming grants for student enrichment, libraries, computer hardware and software, art and music supplies, sports equipment, school and classroom supplies, field trips and special events, gardens and playgrounds, textbooks 
Shane Simpsonand scholarships.
New Democrat housing and social development critic Shane Simpson notes that in an effort to cover up their pre-election budget deception, the B.C. Liberals have created chaos and confusion for PACs and thousands of community groups across the province that depend on gaming grants.
“Organizations from Parent Advisory Councils to local arts and sports groups are being asked to absorb massive cuts without warning or consultation,” said Simpson. “The fact that the education minister announced cuts to PACs in an off-the-cuff comment on the first day of school is a symptom of a disorganized and chaotic government struggling to cover up their pre-election budget deception.”
Last week, before the budget was released, Gordon Campbell insisted that three-year gaming grant agreements with hundreds of organizations were not “real commitments.” The day after the budget was released, when faced with the threat of legal action, the B.C. Liberal government changed their mind and provided last-minute funding to cover the cost of the three-year agreements.
Simpson noted that despite the B.C. Liberals’ budget flip-flop the vast majority of community groups don’t have three-year funding agreements and many will still have their grants reduced or eliminated.
“The Campbell government’s pre-election deception has left community groups across the province scrambling to make up big holes in their budgets,” said Simpson. “British Columbians understand that tough decisions need to be made, but they should have been made in an open, honest, and accountable way, not in a way that financially cripples hundreds of cherished community organizations half way through the fiscal year.”
Carole James and the New Democrats have been holding the B.C. Liberals accountable for backtracking on their election promises to protect health care, education and other vital services, and for breaking their word on the HST.
