“THE FUTURE IS IN HIGHER EDUCATION” says the banner carried by UBC student teachers in a demonstra-.
tion in 1966. In 1970-71, education in B.C. faces a severe crisis as the Socred government cuts education
Sppropriations and threatens higher taxes all down the line on homeowners.

Socred convention reflects
indifference to job crisis

By A VISITOR

Although unemployment fi-
gures in B.C. had jumped by
11,000 in one month, the main
Concern of Social Credit dele-
Sates attending a convention in
the Bayshore Inn recently was
the ‘‘godless”’ state of society.
During the ‘sittings, delegates
heard Premier Bennett. liken
labor struggles to a ‘‘war’’ in
Which the Socreds might get
their heads shot off; heard Wel-
fare Minister Gaglardi blame
Other provinces for his inability
to cope with welfare problems,
and attempted to deal with a
Number of resolutions contain-
Ing bible-belt philosophy in-
Stead of practical approaches to
the problems besetting the So-
Cred government.

Premier Bennett, in his ad-
dress to the convention,
. defended Bill 33 as being part of
legislation which is ‘‘the most
advanced in the world.”’

He said, ‘‘People keep telling
Us to use it now, use itnow.. .
but like the boys in the trenches
you have to keep your head down
low because if you keep raising
it up every time, you are going
to get it shot off.”

When the Premier announced
Provincial taxes would be in-
Creased there wasn’t even a

Burnaby

Burnaby Citizens Association
(BCA) civic campaign went into
high gear last weekend with
Meetings, literature distri-
bution and scores of signs
throughout the community.
Hazel L’Estrange, John Mo-
tiuk, Tom Constable and Fraser
Wilson are the BCA candidates
for aldermanic seats.

At a meeting sponsored by the
Rast Burnaby Ratepayers As-
Sociation, they outlined a pro-
fram which included,a more
€quitable tax distribution for

urnaby citizens.

“Education, hospitals, rapid
transit and welfare must be

financed from the general reve-

ues of Ottawa and Victoria,”
Said Motiuk, a young lawyer. :
‘Our (homeowners) taxes go

Up an average of approximately.

per cent a year. This week the

hy a
PN TE tet

whimper of protest, much less
an outcry.

A pre-20th century resolution
came in with the delegation
from Kamloops, the balliwack
of the man whom one union
leader describes as being the
‘infamous minister of anti-wel-
fare,’’ Phil Gaglardi. These
people want strikes outlawed.

With an°eye on organized la-
bor’s outraged reaction to such
a proposal, Labor Minister Les
Peterson steered the .conven-
tion away from approving the
resolution, telling them with
unctious satisfaction his govern-

ment believed in democracy.
(He did not mention Bill 33 in
the same context.)

Mr. Gaglardi basked in the
praise of a resolution which de-
claimed that misfits from all
over North America were com-
ing to B.C. because of its ‘‘open-
handed social assistance .. .”
(That’s what the resolution
said!)

‘Another called for a back-to-
the-kitchen move on the part of
working women, betraying the
type of kinder, kueche, kribbe
philosophy which runs through
Social Creditism.

Allin all, it was a strange med-
ley of ideas which permeated
the convention hall of these

Tory-from-way-back people who
today support Social Credit.

In a province where working
people make up the majority,
the premier sees themvas a sort
of enemy with whom he is engag-

ed in a “war.” In a province
where unemployment is rife,
the answer is to chase the job-_
less ‘‘back where they come
from.”’

In a province where many old
people suffer from malnutri-
tion, where homeowners are
bowed down with the struggle to
make ends meet, the solution is
higher taxes.

In a province where ware-
houses overflow with lumber,
plywood, shingles and cement;
where people are without
homes and rents are pheno-
menal, the only answer coming
from Premier and rank and file
is more ‘‘deals’’ with foreign
companies to take away still
more of our wealth, leaving us
the poorer.

Sorry. One Social Credit group
did have an answer. It was to run
lotteries to pay for welfare,
medical plans and education
costs — ‘‘until times get bet
ter.” 3

Echoing the religious tenor of
the Socred convention we can
only cry — How long, oh Lord,
how long? 5

Some 88 percent of B.C.’s
public school teachers are
prepared to take strike action
unless their pension plan is
increased and improved by the
provincial government.

The decision to strike was
taken after two unproductive
years of negotiations with the
Socred government whose
treasury board controls the
pension plan.

President of the B.C.
Teachers’ Federation Jim
Kileen said the pension is the
lowest of any province in
Canada. Yet the teachers have
contributed $165 million, and the
interest alone pays for pensions
being paid yearly to retired
teachers. ;

Increased pensions: would cost

_ Teachers vote strike
to get pension rights

the taxpayer nothing, since it
would come from the fund sup-
ported by the teachers them
selves.

They have recommended that
pensions be 70 percent of the
final salary paid to the indi-
vidual teacher. At the present
time it is less than half that
amount.

The Federation has indicated
it will not take strike action until’
after the next sitting of the legis-
lature scheduled for the latter
part of January. Changes could
then be made in the Teachers’
Superannuation Act which may
be satisfactory.

If not, judging from the
current mood of the teachers,
the strike will be on.

‘Put schools first’
COPE candidates say

Committee of Progressive Electors School Board Candidates are
campaigning vigorously around the theme ‘‘PUT SCHOOL FIRST”’.
Elect a School Board with the courage to plan for children’s needs
and to insist upon the necessary funds from the Provincial and
Federal Governments to carry out those plans, said Mrs. Margaret
Chunn, Paul Mitchell and Russel Pedersen, COPE School Board

candidates.

Their campaign will centre
around challenging Bill 86
(Education Act), particularly
the 110% ceiling on operating
costs and the demand that the
provincial government assume
80% of education costs in
Vancouver.

Preventing school drop-outs,
and school failures; more Cana-
dian content in education, a
voice for pupils and parents in
formulating school policies and
direct negotiations with
teachers and all staff on salaries
and working conditions and
support for teachers in their
demand for adequate pensions,
are among their programatic
points.

Margaret Chunn, is a
bookkeeper, married, three
children, and is a member of
Local 15, Office & Technical
Employees Union. She helped

organize the Women’s Com- -

mittee Against High Prices and
is a former member of the
Winnipeg School Board.

Paul Mitchell, 23, is a nursing
orderly, member of SPEC,
member of the Public Service
Alliance of Canada and is active
in the Young New Democrats.

Russel Pedersen, 51, is an
architect, married, five
children, formerly of New

civic campaign in full swing

business tax was increased one-
half of one per cent for the first
time in five years!”’

Fraser Wilson said the cry for
‘‘progress,’’ defined as new
industries, more highways and
freeways, etc., is justified only.
if all the people of a commu-
nity are benefited. He said
priorities as to need lie in pub-
lic housing for senior citizens
and low income groups; estab-
lishing stricter legislation on
pollution; a Landlord-Tenant
Appeal Board and the full en-
franchisement of tenants, along
with other legislation to ease
the burden on lower income
citizens.

Hazel L’Estrange told the audi-

ence that after attending coun-
cil meetings for months she was
convinced. of. one. thing: home-
owners are not truly repre-

tig

sented on council.

She said, ‘‘Whether you are in-
terested in equality, in taxa-
tion, Stormont exchange, more
parks for East Burnaby, trucks
banned from routes in resi-
dential areas, an elected Parks
Board . . . or sidewalks and
local improvements, you must
become involved.”

Tom Constable, a trade
unionist from the IBEW, said
pollution is one of the main con-
cerns of progressive people.

While there is a grant avail-
able to ‘‘clean’” Burnaby Lake
for the purposes of the Canada
Games, it is not sufficient for
comprehensive development of
the lake area as a park, Con-

stable said.

BCA want to see the whole Bur-
naby Lake ‘area developed, not:
as Coney Island type recrea-

tion, but as a natural green
haven for people who want to es-
cape city streets.

School Board candidates Beth
Chobotuk, Maurits Mann and
Orest Moysiuk in their talks
dealt with deficiencies in educa-.
tion financing as well as the need
for improved learning facilities
and the improvement and in-
crease in community use of
schools.

There is wide interest in civic
elections in Burnaby this year,
with several organizations spon-

soring all-candidate meetings
at Burnaby Central, December
3, 8 p.m.; Simon Fraser, Main
Mall, November 30, 12:30 p.m.,
and one at which School Board
candidates will speak at Cas-
cade Heights, December 2.

» Burnaby elections take placé °‘
December 12. IA ENE

Zealand where he had his own
practice in Auckland for 10
years.

MARGARET CHUNN

PAUL MITCHELL

y 3°
As