Lethbridge-West MLA Shannon Phillips. (Canadian Press file photo)

By rdnewsNOW Staff

Lethbridge-West MLA Shannon Phillips

NDP MLA challenging education minister to “stake her job” on UCP back to school plan

Jan 7, 2022 | 2:38 PM

If students are sent home from school due to the rapid spread of Omicron across Alberta, Education Minister Adriana LaGrange must resign, said Lethbridge-West MLA Shannon Phillips, on Friday.

This week, LaGrange announced that students will return to in-person learning on Jan. 10.

“We’re now approaching two years into this pandemic and we have a Premier, an Education Minister, and a Cabinet that still refuses to invest in protecting kids in school. Our kids deserve better than watching this Minister make the same mistakes over and over and over,” said Phillips.

“We know kids need to be in school. They need in-person instruction; the ability to ask questions and challenge themselves in the classroom. Each and every time we go online, it causes hardship and jeopardizes their learning.”

The NDP says the UCP are leading Alberta into a situation where it is very likely schools will close.

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“So I am challenging the Education Minister directly: if she is confident that schools will stay open then she should stake her job on it. If thousands of students are sent home again because of this government’s refusal to step up then the Minister herself must step down.”