3
Progressive Conservative Leader John Tory's move yesterday to allow a free vote on extending public financing to religious schools will increase his popularity among voters while giving Ontarians more time to understand the controversial proposal, supporters of the plan predicted.
While some characterized the announcement as a minor setback, most said the bitter opposition to the idea made it too contentious to sell during the provincial election campaign.
"I guess it would be nice if the road was smooth to this policy, but we understand that it is a controversial policy and we think he's still 100 per cent committed to the policy," said Ira Walfish, chairman of the Ontario Multi-Faith Coalition, which advocates equal funding for faith-based schools.
However, many of Mr. Tory's caucus members and candidates have misgivings about giving non-Catholic private religious schools the option of coming into the public system to get government financing, rendering the plan's chances of success uncertain.
Related Articles
Internet Links
Still, groups that have pushed for government dollars for all faith-based schools accepted Mr. Tory's announcement yesterday, with some arguing that it actually boosted the proposal's chance of success. By indicating he is responsive to public feedback, some said the Conservative Leader has a better shot at winning the election on Oct. 10.
"I think that even though the other parties are going to make hay out of it ... it's going to peter out over the next few days. Things are going to start sinking in over the larger electorate that he is flexible, he's open to suggestions. He's not close-minded, and I personally think that he's going to get more votes out of it," said M.D. Khalid, chairman of the Islamic Schools Association of Canada, which manages two private religious schools in Mississauga.
The groups' reaction is rooted in their strong belief that Ontarians will support the plan once they fully understand it. The issue has largely dominated the election campaign and attracted stiff resistance from the Liberals.
"I think there's such an amount of fear-mongering and misinformation in the opposition to this proposal that it can only be helpful to have a reasonable debate in the legislature. I think that a lot of people are responding emotionally to stuff that isn't necessarily true, that's exaggerated, and I think getting it out in the open over a period of time without the intense time frames of an election campaign can only be helpful," said John Vanasselt, spokesman for the Ontario Alliance of Christian Schools.
Bernie Farber, chief executive officer of the Canadian Jewish Congress, called Mr. Tory's announcement an "opportunity."
"Now we have a real opportunity; it'll take a little bit more time, but this is an issue that we've been fighting for for 40 years. It's not really amenable to the 17-second sound bite while on the stump," he said.
Proponents argue that extending public funds to faith-based schools that comply with government requirements will strengthen the public education system and eliminate a key source of discrimination. Catholic schools have long been publicly financed in Ontario under a constitutional guarantee.
Full text: 
