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School board should pay for lunchtime – Metro US

School board should pay for lunchtime

The Liberals are threatening to introduce new legislation that would force the Halifax regional school board to pay for lunchtime supervision for all students.

“I think Howard Windsor is off course on the legislation and the minister has turned her back on the parents by not enforcing it,” Liberal education critic Leo Glavine said.

“What this comes down to is a one-person school board can be dictatorial, and it looks like Mr. Windsor is going to go out exercising that power.”

One-man school board Howard Windsor decided Wednesday that students who live within an appropriate walking distance of their school will still have to pay $200 a year for its Excel lunchtime supervision. The policy is changing to say Excel will now be a non-profit organization, whereas before the board made money from the fees.

Board spokeswoman Shaune MacKinlay said Windsor feels the new policy abides by the legislation and parents are pleased with it.

Education Minister Karen Casey also reiterated her support for the Halifax regional school board’s new lunch policy yesterday.

Glavine, however, says the board’s policy is not in the spirit of the bill he introduced and the legislation passed last fall calling for the elimination of lunchtime supervision fees in public schools.

lindsay.jones@metronews.ca