Tory petition targets overcrowding in Manitoba classrooms

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This article was published 27/09/2024 (397 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Progressive Conservative party has launched a petition to rile up parents of students studying in crowded classrooms and mobilize Manitobans who want the province to prioritize building new schools.

PC Leader Wayne Ewasko and education critic Grant Jackson began seeking signatures via their caucus’s website on Thursday.

In a news release, the duo criticized the NDP for “cancelling” the construction of nine new schools and thousands of daycare spaces in some of the fastest-growing communities in Canada.

“We knew the higher student numbers were coming and yet there’s no new schools being proposed by this NDP government, which has a significant number of educators in its caucus,” Jackson, MLA for Spruce Woods, told the Free Press.

“Its, frankly, very disappointing that these people aren’t advocating on behalf of their profession to ensure that teachers have (adequate) space.”

Jackson said he plans to drop the petition on Education Minister Nello Altomare’s desk in the coming weeks.

The former Tory government, led by Heather Stefanson, had announced it would use a controversial public-private partnership model, known as a P3 approach, to fast-track opening nine schools before her party lost its re-election bid in October.

The sites in question were slated for Winnipeg — in communities including Bridgwater Lakes, Prairie Pointe, North McPhillips and Transcona’s Devonshire Park — as well as West St. Paul, Brandon, Ste. Anne and Neepawa.

Anglophone and francophone families are waiting on two additions in Brandon.

Premier Wab Kinew announced in November the NDP was reconsidering the plan.

At the time, Kinew accused his predecessors of not setting aside money for the projects that were pledged to be operational by 2027-28 and choosing a building model that is costly up front.

The P3 proposal involved hiring a single contractor to design, construct and maintain the nine sites. The province was anticipated to sign a 30-year agreement with the winning bidder and pay for ongoing maintenance.

The tender for the project closed Oct. 4, one day after the NDP was elected.

Asked about the petition on Thursday, Kinew gave a generic answer about the hard work his government is putting in, alongside front-line workers, to “fix the damage of the cuts under Heather Stefanson and the PCs.”

Budget 2024 earmarked funding for pre-existing school projects, including É​cole Mino Pimatisiwin School in an up-and-coming suburb in north Winnipeg and École Sage Creek Bonavista in the Louis Riel School Division.

The budget also set aside funds to complete work in Morden, Steinbach and the francophone division’s new site in Sage Creek.

— with files from Chris Kitching

maggie.macintosh@freepress.mb.ca