Education, health care among 'range of issues' UCP government asked to address in upcoming Alberta budget
The head of the association representing 46,000 teachers in Alberta is calling on the province to help with growing classroom sizes and inflation.
"This government is failing the students of Alberta, and they deserve better," Jason Schilling, president of the Alberta Teachers' Association (ATA), told media on Tuesday outside the Alberta legislature.
"Where is the funding for enrolment growth? Where is the funding for inflation? And where is the added funding necessary to repair the damage that has been caused by this government (due to) a lack of funding for so many years?"
A December survey by the ATA of more than 2,000 teachers found 61 per cent of them reported increased class sizes this year compared to the year before.
Thirty-nine per cent of them reported having more than 30 students, with class sizes averaging 32-37 students.
The survey also said roughly half of teachers are waiting months -- even up to a year -- for students' specialized assessments.
"Parents to wait 12 months to get the assessments they need in order to enhanced their learning and their supports at school - the government should be ashamed of that fact," Schilling said.
The call from the ATA for more government education funding comes a little more than a week before Alberta Finance Minister Nate Horner is slated to deliver the province's budget for the upcoming year.
Despite estimates the UCP government will end the current fiscal year with a surplus of more than $5 billion, demands on the province are growing.
Education isn't the only sector calling for cash. Alberta's official Opposition says major investments are needed to save what they call an underfunded and understaffed health-care system.
"The number one thing the UCP needs to address in budget next week is how they plan to fix the mess they have created in health care and ensure we have the funding in place to address infrastructure and staffing shortages," Shannon Phillips, the Alberta NDP's critic for finance, told media on Tuesday.
That call is being echoed by the Alberta Medical Association, which wants to see stabilization funding provided to family doctors immediately as well as a new payment model.
How much the province has to spend comes down to one thing, says University of Calgary Economist Trevor Tombe: the price of crude oil.
"No other factor matters more for the government's bottom line than oil prices," Tombe told CTV News Edmonton on Tuesday.
He says the province's sensitivity to oil prices is increasing rapidly.
"Each dollar for the coming fiscal year will be worth about $750 million to the Government of Alberta," Tombe said.
At last estimate, the province projected a $2.1-billion surplus next year, a surplus that could be wiped out completely by a $3 change in the price of oil.
Horner was not available for a pre-budget interview, but in a statement to CTV News Edmonton, he says he heard from a range of Albertans during budget town halls on a range of issues, including education, health care and wildfires.
“Their input reinforced our priority of saving for the future and providing targeted supports to those who need them now," Horner said in the statement.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'The world is too messy for bureaucratic hurdles': Canada still bars Afghanistan aid
Ottawa has plans to finally stop blocking Canadian development aid to Afghanistan this year.
Student anti-war protesters dig in as faculties condemn university leadership over calling police
Students protesting the Israel-Hamas war at at universities across U.S., some of whom have clashed with police in riot gear, dug in Saturday and vowed to keep their demonstrations going, while several school faculties condemned university presidents who have called in law enforcement to remove protesters.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Hamas is reviewing an Israeli proposal for a ceasefire in Gaza, as possible Rafah offensive looms
Hamas said Saturday it was reviewing a new Israeli proposal for a ceasefire in Gaza, as Egypt intensified efforts to broker a deal to end the months-long war and stave off a possible Israeli ground offensive into the southern Gaza city of Rafah.
Cisco reveals security breach, warns of state-sponsored spy campaign
State-sponsored actors targeted security devices used by governments around the world, according to technology firm Cisco Systems, which said the network devices are coveted intrusion points by spies.
I just don't get Taylor Swift
It's one thing to say you like Taylor Swift and her music, but don't blame CNN's AJ Willingham's when she says she just 'oesn't get' the global phenomenom.
opinion RFK Jr.'s presidential candidacy and its potential threat to Biden and Trump
Although it's still unclear how much damage Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s candidacy can do to either Joe Biden or Donald Trump this election, Washington political columnist Eric Ham says what is clear is both sides recognize the potential threat.
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Russia renews attacks on the Ukrainian energy sector as Kyiv launches drones at southern Russia
Russia launched a barrage of missiles against Ukraine overnight, in attacks that appeared to target the country's energy infrastructure. Meanwhile, Russia said its air defense systems had intercepted more than 60 Ukrainian drones over the southern Krasnodar region.