Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is for the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment and my question is simple. Does he support inclusive education and can he explain it? How and why?
Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. The Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Lafferty.
Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. I think there were three questions there. I can answer one of them. I do believe that we need to support our students in our school system. Mahsi.
Thank you. Maybe the Minister can enlighten us on his master plan why he reduced inclusive education money and how that’s benefitted the school boards and the students.
Mahsi. During the last budget debate we went through some challenges and had to work closely with the standing committee to make some changes. It wasn’t just my decision. The early childhood development was the forefront of our discussion. So we had to allocate money from within and we had to find the funds.
But I must remind the House that there is a comprehensive review that has been undertaken for inclusive schooling. So I’m looking forward to the input from engagements and the stakeholders. If we’re going to make changes, I need to stand before the standing committee, make a presentation and then, more than likely, it will be in the House here as well. So there will be more debates on that particular topic. Mahsi.
Thank you. If the Minister responsible for Education doesn’t want to be responsible for the inclusive education, maybe we should be asking him today who should be responsible for this and how has it improved the lives and education of students who need inclusive education money. Thank you.
Mahsi. Through our engagement and also visiting communities we’ve been hearing about inclusive schooling, how can we best address the special needs in our schools, how can we have a speech therapist and other professions in our schools, how can we provide support. So based on that, and we’re doing a comprehensive review, and that will address what the Member is alluding to. So I am looking forward to the outcome of the project itself, and it is comprehensive, it will take some time, but it will make some changes to our educational system. Mahsi.
Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. Final, short supplementary, Mr. Hawkins.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Minister hasn’t explained how he’s improved education by reducing money rather than just saying there’s a review. It’s not normal to delete money just before a review. So maybe the Minister can explain his master plan as to how he plans to improve inclusive education by reducing their funds that are required. Thank you.
Mahsi. With any review, evaluation, comprehensive review, there are expected changes that will be coming. If there’s going to be an increase in cost, then that will be before standing committee. So I will be addressing through standing committee when the time comes. Mahsi.
Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. The Member for Range Lake, Mr. Dolynny.
