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PAGE 4, Wl DNESDAY, SLIPTliMBER 3, 1980. WHITBY FREE PRESS whitby r Voice of the County Town Michael lan Burgess, Publisher. Managing Editor Ihe only Whitby newspaper independently owned and operated by Whitby residents for Whitby residents. L Published every Wednesday by M.B.M. Publîshing Sand Photography Imc. M>orte 669-61 Il T'ht- Free Press Building, ni1 Broek Street North, 1,.(>. Box 2t)6. WhitbN., Ont1. Michael J. Knell Community Editor Marjorie A. Burgess Production Manager Karen Thompson Advertising Manager Mailing Permit No. 460 Member of the Whitby Chamber of Commerce Municipal election issues Cost of education must be the prime issue in the upcoming Board election Whether we realize it or not, there are a great many weighty and important issues to be decided upon in the municipal election that will be held on November 10. Most of these issues have to do with the pocket- book.of every local ratepayer in the Town of Whit- by. The cost of government is becoming a burden, so much so, that if something Is not done about it in the next few years, it will slowly bankrupt the in- dividual. The taxpayer, elther residential or commercial, can no longer afford government. Government is becomIng a fungus that Is slowly strangling our .economlc life. It will be perhaps, easier to divide the three municipal elections up and give a sy nopsis of what we feel are the issues that the candidates must deal with. Firstly, the most often ignoredelection is that of Trustees to the Durham Board of'Education. There can be only one major Issue here and that is what it is costing us to educate our children. Slmply put, it is costing us too much money into the system, a system that is no longer producing the calibre product that we should be getting for our money. Any candidate for the Board who can demon- strate that he or she can keep the cost of education down, or even reduce it deserves the support of the electorate, but first they had better be able to prove that they have a way to accomplish it without sacrificing the needs of the children. We strongly advise all taxpayers, especially parents to take a close look at the election for the school board. Cost is the issue. For example, during the public discussions on the budget that was held by the Durham Board of Education earlier this year, no trustee from any member municipality showed any desire to make the board more economically sound. In fact, one trustee from the Pickering area suggested that the budget be increased by ten per cent. We acknowledge that this was for a worthy cause, namely the purchase of books and other resource materials, but the fact that no trustee showed any concern for the pocketbook of the tax- payer must surely become a central issue. This newspaper has constantly been critical of the financial policies of the Durham Board of Education, however, we have also acknowledged the need for good. quality education. What this publication has demanded and will continue to demand is that the Board of Education and more specifically, those who seek membership to that body, become more financially responsible and at- tempt to pare down the cost. It is also acknowledged that we will be in for some severe criticism from Whitby Trustee David Sims, chairman ofthe Board's finance or audit- budget committee, who will defend his budget to the end saying that it was both reasoned and reasonable considering the economic times and that the impact on the taxpayer was as minimal as possible. That, from his point of view, may be true for Mr. Sims has attempted to do the job that he was elec- ted to do and whether he did well is for the voter to decide, not this newspaper. It is not easy to determine why education costs o0 much, so much that it requires 55.1 cents out of every $1 paid in property taxes. One area that must be suspect is the area of wages and salaries, since they comprise 80 per cent or more of the board's current (or operating) budget. Therefore, since the cost of, education is the prime issue and salaries are the largest portion of this'cost, the whole area of management and labor relations must come Into play. What is needed is reform in the area of management and labor relations as far as school boards and their employees are concerned. Because the province, and hence the school boards (being creatures of the province), have a constitutional duty to maintain a high level of education in this country, they are backed into a corner when dealing with the demands of the teachers and other unionized employees. Secondly, while the board feels compelled to grant the unions their sometimes outrageous demands in order to uphold the province's con- stitutional duty, the province does not come up with any more money to make the financial burden on the Board and, therefore, the taxpayers any easier. Because of this, the whole arrangement for Board of Education financing comes Into play. In this area, the taxpayer is the loser, whether that taxpayer is residential or commercial, he is caught between the "devil and the deep blue sea." Any candidate with an understanding of these issues and can demonstrate a method of solving these problems before the taxpayer becomes bankrupt, should be deserving the support of the polis. As a footnote, the Whitby Free Press should in- form Its readers that we do not, except under ex- ceptional circumstances, endorse any candidate for office and will not do so unless those excep- tional cIrcumstances occur. This editorial, and the rest that are to follow in this municipal election series are not designed to support any partîcular candidate-but to give our views of what we hold to be the issues at hand that need discussion. Next week, the issues in the election.for seats on Durham Regional Council will be discussed. 'After that we will attempt to delve into the local issues and finally Into the mayoralty race. Any reader, or candidate, who has any view on this serles is invited to write and express their con- cerns, to the Editor, The Whitby Free Press, P.O. Box 206, Whitby, L1N 581, (or deliver to our office at 131 Brock St. N.) They will be published at the earl lest opportunity. Any person who is seeking elecion to any municipal office, be It Whitby Town Council, Durham Regional Council or the Durham Board of Education is invited to contact the Free Press at 668-6111 so that we may maintain the principle of equal coverage for all candidates. p/I - - - A/Qa~ tE7~ ~E~E - -- CL/,W6/tv'6 ?~~/'2~ - - - 1