Alberta’s Wildrose party promised Friday it will end mandatory add-on fees for grade-school students.
“Over many years the current PC government has made it harder for parents to make ends meet by imposing ever increasing fees on parents and families with children,” party leader Danielle Smith told an audience in Lethbridge.
“No more nickel-and-diming for parents to fill the gaps created in the shortfalls of (Progressive Conservative) education funding.”
Smith said the decision will mean about $100 to $150 in savings per student per year.
Her party has already promised a $200 per student tax credit for families with young children.
It’s an issue that polarizes the two front-running parties in the provincial election, which will see voters go to the polls April 23.
Premier Alison Redford said her Progressive Conservative party is improving education from a broader perspective.
“We’ve done some really transformative things in the past six months, putting $107 million back into education (and) committing to infrastructure through our budget,” said Redford, speaking to reporters in Leduc.
She cautioned the province has to be careful to not tinker with the work being done by Alberta’s school boards to avoid the two bodies tripping over each other.
’“I think coming up with these sorts of proposals don’t actually take into account the work school boards are doing long-term, and really the fundamental work we’re doing in education,” she said.
The Liberals and NDP have already said they, too, would do away with school fees.
Also Friday, NDP leader Brian Mason unveiled the party’s environmental platform in Edmonton.
Mason said it’s time to scrap the $2 billion carbon capture and storage project and use the $400 million that remains to invest in front-line green projects like mass transit and interest-free loans for green home retrofits.
Mason also promised hard deadlines for cleaning up oilsands tailings ponds and making oil companies pay the cost.
And he promised camping in provincial parks would be free.
Also in Edmonton, Alberta Liberal Leader Raj Sherman touted the benefits of preventative medicine, saying it’s important to regularly test one’s blood pressure and if drinking alcohol, to do so in moderation.