6 ~ North Shore News —- Wednesday, May 3, 2000

———VIEW POINT:

Tutor tussie

recently reported tiff over

tutors in North Vancouver

schools raises more questions

about education funding in this
province.

According to an April 28 News
story, parents with children in North
Vancouver schools who need special
. tutoring for their children will be out
of luck come September. A committee
of parents, teachers and administrators
‘has determined that private sector
tutors will no longer be allowed to
work in public schools during school
hours. Readers who were unaware that
. private tutors were even working in

public schools will be excused raised
eyebrows here. But the reality on the
*_ B.C. education front is that despite the

it in the public schoo: system.

Parents therefore are faced with the
ludicrous situation of having to pony
up extra money atop all the school
taxes they pay to have tutors teach their
children in schools that are already sup-
posed to be teaching their children.

Now even that option will be elimi-
nated.

Public school unions, of course,
have a problem with private sector
types working in their fiefdoms.

And while promises have been made
that unionized special aides and learn-
ing assistance workers already in the
school system will be trained to take
over for the private tators there’s no
guarantee either that there will be
enough of the newly trained aides

SUING FOR
BREACH OF DUTY,
LAX STANDARDS,

GOING RAMPANT

AND COMMITTING
BILLIONS AND

BILLIONS OF DOLLARS >
IN DECEPTION?

available to the parents whose children
need them or that those aides will offer
the same tutoring quality.

~ billions allocated to education in this
province children who need specialized
Acarniing assistance don’t have access to -

CLARK'S CONFUSION OVER THE LEAKING. CONDO
LAWSUIT WAS UNDERSTANDABLE

enrolled i into the Alliance.
However, such apparently modest
numbers of recruits, sometimes repeated
several times daily on an
ongoing basis, can soon
begin to total worth-
while numbers to add to _
Manning’s very solid
block of support in the
West. >.
The trick, of course, is
how well ‘he can dupli-
cate the process | in vital
Ontario, which is pretty
obviously Tom Long
country. But no less’:
important in the equa- .-*:
_tion are Long’ 's and Day’s own differing
- problems in the West and central Canada.
respectively,

Long’s record as a highly ‘successful ©
behind-the-scenes strategist for the Harris:
government will certainly strike chords .
with many Ontario voters... -

But in the Alliance heartlands of
Alberta and B.C. — with just over s
weeks left — he’s jikely to to have a mu
tougher time erasing the image of a.: |
Johnny-come-lately Hogtown backroom
fixer who has never held elected office.

Even in Ontario it may be difficult for

AS the’ race od lead the Canadian
Alliance party gets into its full
stride,.why are
even Preston -
Manning’s com-
" petitors Sill tacitly
conceding that he’s
the one to beat?

The man who creat-
ed the Reform Party,
brought it from.
kitchen-table chatter to
Her Majesty's Loyal
Opposition of 60 MPs

within 10 years, then
persuaded it (by a 91% majority) to
change i its name and become the catch-all
small ‘c’ conservative alternative to the
Liberals was in town last week — not that
you'd ever have known for all the notice
the media took of his visit.

Manning's leadership campaign to
date differs markedly from those of his
two chief opponents. Let Stockwell Day
/and Tom Long, comparative unknowns

. ‘nationally, cnjoy at this stage the full
" ¢ media spotlight, for which he himself
»T feels no Simmediately pressing need. After
/ all, he’s been a prominent national figure
" for most of a decade and doubly so since —_ some to actually visualize him as prime
“becoming official « opposition leader i in’ -___ minister less than a year from now.
1997... -_ ; With Day, a seasoned and successful
So tight now Manning concentrat-. -,. Alberta cabinet minister, it’s the reverse.
ing on small, intimate coffee parties to He can undoubtedly win support | in the |
- Sign up new "Alliance members who will *- West at Manning’s expense. ~
- hopefully support him i in the’ June: 24 © ~ But his outspoken ‘evangelic
leadership vote.-:.. against abortion and homosexuality may
_-. The closing one in last ‘Wednesday’ 's already have cooked his goose with many
round in the Lower Mainland ‘was typical. ' Ontarians, to whom he makes Manning
Held in the community club of West begin to look like a moderate — as does,.
~ Van’s tony Panorama Village, ‘i it attracted —< for quite different reasons, some of th
some 95 “guests” 5 bein eventually extreme fiscal conservatism voiced by -

g-
So when votes are counted on Jun
24, expect Manning to lead but lack:
‘clear majority, In the July 8 run-off.
how many western and Ontario yo
“alike will then figure 2s follows
Manning may lack “chari
Ontario roots. But he has d
beyond all doubt the vision to create, the
tenacity to build, the imagination to
embrace change ‘and ‘the
his own future for his beli

can rt help but: notice the already budding bitterness and
vented: between. our | newly-clected North

fancouyer District council. Such a wonderful start will surely
environment that promotes productivity, accor-

and respect for one another. Don’t you agree editor?

‘We, /as ‘residents of the district; are: privileged with the
unin to vet in one the most st desirable locations in the

: inspires and motivates! tis to burn up our

les to attain this? Is it vit that we five in a community that has

ii] rlete moratorium on all development and growth. (No
Ne, al Utely no one else can ever live here, family, friends or.

foes;:no one:) That's 's °s really | beneficial for the economy, don’ t With he Grits tn:

© always make: ‘changes ter. if Presto
ted’ and severely over- flubs.
cr parks bursting with
> We don’ t pay enough

~ LETTERS TO THE EDITOR must inchice yo
- name, full anal te: and telephone number.
e-mail trenshaw@nsnews.

com “°1139 Lonsdale Aveaue

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