Police quiz bus driver

VICTORIAN police have i nterviewed a school bus driver in country Victoria who tied up an 11-year-old disabled passenger with shoelaces.

Investigators interviewed the 66-year-old Ballarat man on Wednesday about the incident, in which he tied up the girl while taking her to the Ballarat Specialist School on August 28.

He was released pending the application of a summons.

Ballarat Specialist School principal John Burt said other people on the bus brought the incident to the school’s attention, and the school i mmediately spoke to the driver, the bus chaperone and the bus company to point out it was inappropriate.

They also advised the girl’s father.

‘‘The bus people, out of frustration and at the ‘nth’ degree with the behaviour of this child, used shoelaces to try to restrain the child in a seat on the bus, which is totally wrong. There is no argument about that f rom us or the bus people,’’ Mr Burt said.

He said the bus company had given the driver and chaperone ‘‘a good talking to’’ and the school had met with the father several times, explaining how it had handled the situation.

‘‘I would say he’s extremely unhappy with the response. What he wanted, I don’t know,’’ Mr Burt said.

‘‘ The protocols we went through as a school I’m very happy with, and I’m certainly sure that what the bus company did, and just the remorsefulness of the two people concerned, confirmed that they’d been spoken to.’’

The Department of Education and Early Childhood Development said it took the allegations very seriously.

It said ‘‘ reasonable action’’ could be taken to ensure the safety of all passengers, such as a child changing seats or temporarily stopping the bus.

Such i ssues were mostly resolved at the local level between the bus operator, the school and parents, it said.