Beck To Reverse Scott Moe’s Cuts to Education, Get Saskatchewan Out Of Last Place
For immediate release: September 3, 2024
Beck To Reverse Scott Moe’s Cuts to Education, Get Saskatchewan Out Of Last Place
Saskatchewan NDP would invest $2 billion into our kids’ future; a generational investment
SASKATOON - Today, Saskatchewan NDP Leader Carla Beck committed to reversing Scott Moe’s cuts to education and getting Saskatchewan out of last place by investing $2 billion in education to reduce class sizes, hire teachers and education workers, support students with complex learning needs and more.
“The greatest investment we can make into the future success of our province is investing in the next generation, but under Scott Moe, our kids’ classrooms are overcrowded, underfunded, and under-resourced,” said Beck. “This election, the future of our province is on the ballot. With this generational investment – we’ll fix our schools, reverse Scott Moe’s cuts, and get Saskatchewan out of last place. It’s time for change.”
Saskatchewan used to have the highest levels of per-student funding in Canada. But after years of cuts, Saskatchewan children receive less funding than kids in every other Canadian province.
Last year, fifteen thousand new students enrolled in Saskatchewan schools since 2016. Yet Scott Moe and the Sask. Party only increased the overall number of teachers working in the province by one since that year.
Beck’s commitment to education will reverse Scott Moe’s cuts and hire hundreds of new teachers, educational assistants and school staff.
The investment will also address class size and complexity, increase english-as-an-additional-language funding, and get schools built faster in growing communities.
“These are real dollars that will increase per-student funding every year,” said Beck. “For the first time in nearly a decade, schools will get to choose what to add to help students, not what to cut. This investment will give schools the predictability they need to solve the problems in our schools.”
Beck said her plan would include fast-tracking construction of the new southeast Regina joint-use elementary school to begin in 2025 and the Saskatoon-Eastside high school to begin in 2026.
Beck kicked off her campaign last week with a commitment to not raise taxes. The Saskatchewan NDP will release a fully-costed platform that balances the budget in four years.
