No plans to let parents shift tax dollars out of public schools, Higgs says

Premier Blaine Higgs says he has no plans to let New Brunswick parents divert their tax dollars away from the public school system if they opt for private schools or home schooling for their children.

That's a proposal from the group 4 My Canada, one of the organizations defending Higgs from criticism over his stance on Policy 713 and protections for LGBTQ students.

Besides supporting Higgs, the group says on its website that its other objective is "the common sense principle that a family's tax dollars should go to supporting their child's education directly."

"If a family decides that private schooling or home schooling is best for them, the tax dollars that would otherwise go to the public system should be given to them to support their educational choice."

Faytene Grasseschi, who helps run the Christian conservative organization, told CBC News last week that the high rate of departures from public schools justifies a look at some kind of policy allowing the shifting of funding.

Higgs said in May that New Brunswick has the "highest exodus" per capita in Canada of parents opting to pull their children out of the public school system, a comment he made while discussing the teaching of LGBTQ+ issues in the provincial curriculum.

"Our tax dollars are supposed to serve the citizens," Grasseschi told CBC News.

"If a system is beginning to fail, or if citizens are losing confidence in the system, then I think it's time for a conversation."

Grasseschi said the shifting of tax dollars could be in the form of a tax credit.

But in a statement Monday, Higgs rejected the idea.

"The increase in students choosing to leave the public school system and the rationale for doing so is concerning," he said.

"We need to understand why and to what extent this is occurring. This does not mean we are considering a different funding model at this time."

The province did not provide data showing New Brunswick has the highest rate of departures from the public system among Canadian provinces.

The Department of Education and Early Childhood Development said the enrolment of school-age children in private schools has grown to 1,890 from 1,530 over the last two years.