Private schools’ association warns defunding will burden families and government

Quebec Premier François Legault takes part in question period at the National Assembly on Oct. 24, 2024. (The Canadian Press/Jacques Boissinot)

In the wake of the Bedford school controversy, opposition parties called on the government to defund private religious schools, a proposal that Quebec’s main private school association says would end up costing the government and parents more.

Earlier this week, the Parti Quebecois (PQ) leader, Paul St-Pierre Plamondon, characterized the Bedford case as an example of “Islamist invasion” and made a series of suggestions to the government to strengthen secularism in Quebec, including cutting subsidies to religious schools.

Quebec Solidaire followed suit and on Wednesday tabled a motion asking the government to consider ending public funding for private denominational schools. It was rejected by the CAQ government.

“I really don't understand where this argument comes from, especially [since] the problems we've been seeing in the news recently have not been associated to private schools, but to the public sector,” said David Bowles, the Chairman of Federation of private educational institutions.

Moreover, Bowles explained that private religious schools that are subsidized by the province are obligated to follow the required Quebec curriculum and must adhere to the Quebec Charter of human right and freedoms.

“I don't see why we would take away subsidies from schools who are basically respecting the law, teaching kids the required curriculum.”

He emphasized that if funding was cut, private schools would have to double tuition fees, which many families would not be able to afford, ultimately forcing the government to subsidize those costs.

“Without the subsidies, a lot of these schools would not be able to function as they're functioning at the moment. Some would have to close,” Bowles said.

A PQ motion to strengthen secularism and cut funding to religious schools was also defeated by the CAQ government.

“I can understand that people could be worried that in schools that were founded by religious orders, that this kind of thing might happen,” he added.

“But we cannot let these kinds of events happen in our schools. We wouldn't be following the law. We wouldn't be following the curriculums that are required of us to teach to the students in order to keep our permits.”

On Friday, Quebec Premier François Legault justified his government’s position by saying that no responsible government would make such a spur of the moment decision.

“It's a weighty issue that needs to be thought through,” Legault said.

There are about 50 private religious schools in the province that received around $160 million a year in public funding, according to the PQ.

The secularism debate was reignited after the release of an Oct. 11 report on a government investigation that revealed that a dominant clan of teachers had created a toxic climate of fear and intimidation at Bedford elementary school.

Eleven teachers have since been suspended and their licences revoked.

Legault has instructed Education Minister Bernard Drainville and the Minister for Secularism, Jean-François Roberge, to "examine all options" for "strengthening controls and secularism in schools."

With files from the Canadian Press