Heavy agenda as N.S. legislature opens

The Nova Scotia legislature reconvened Tuesday for its earliest spring session in decades.

The Liberal government called the early session to deal with a heavy legislative agenda including the provincial budget and major education reforms — including the dissolution of seven of eight elected school boards.

However, Premier Stephen McNeil has said an education bill that was expected immediately wouldn’t be tabled, although the government intends to pass legislation this spring.

Education Minister Zach Churchill said Tuesday his cross-province meetings with unionized teachers and principals on consultant Avis Glaze’s report has given him “really helpful” feedback.

“We’ve had meaningful conversations with teachers and principals and their feedback has influenced our thinking, that’s all I can tell you at this point. We will continue to pursue the spirit and intent of those (Glaze) recommendations.”

Churchill said talks with the union would continue, but no new meeting had been scheduled. McNeil met with Nova Scotia Teachers Union president Liette Doucet on Monday.

In a vote last week, more than 80 per cent of teachers endorsed strike action to protest the province’s decision to largely endorse reforms contained in the Glaze report, including the removal of 1,000 principals, vice-principals and supervisors from the union.

The report also recommends eliminating the province’s seven English-language school boards and creating a provincial college of educators to license and regulate the teaching profession.

Any strike would be illegal — and teachers could face fines of up to $1,000 a day.

Still, Churchill signalled the government is willing to be flexible in its approach to implementing 11 of Glaze’s 22 recommendations immediately.

THE CANADIAN PRESS/ANDREW VAUGHAN Protesters gather outside Province House as the legislature resumes sitting in Halifax on Tuesday. Health, education and environmental issues were among the many concerns being expressed by the demonstrators, including plans by Northern Pulp to pump treated waste water into the Northumberland Strait.