Legislative Assembly

1. Cyril Sinnott: With reference to the library which you have just mentioned. Are you advocating capital expansion of one particular University before any dia- cussion on possible integration?

Honourable Gordon L. Bennett: I didn’t advocate the campaign fund for file

library. These institutions are autonomous, we do not indicate what plans file should carry out with respect to their program or their curriculum, and this originates, of course, with the institution.

J. Cyril Sinnott: Would you permit a further question? Honourable Gordon L. Bennett: Yes.

J. Cyril Sinnott: Rather, an observation. Yesterday I suggested that the res- ponsibility for determining the future of higher education in Prince Edward Island rested with the people, who are going to pay for it, not with the universities as you seem to suggest. Do you agree or disagree?

Honourable Gordon L. Bennett: I would feel, Mr. Speaker, that the question raised by the honourable member from Second Kings more appropriate than the one that is raised by the Fifth Kings member. It is a question of which is the chea and the better way to conduct university training in this province. This answer not yet been provided. I am not saying that in time there won't be more specific and exact information than we have at the present time, but we do not have that information right now.

J. Cyril Sinnott: Mr. Minister, you just suggested it was a good idea to go ahead with this capital expansion regarding the library. It would seem to suggest to me that you feel that the universities should be permitted to determine for the people of this province what is best for them without any public participation.

Honourable Gordon L. Bennett: I hope the honourable member is not reading into my remarks things that are not there. I was trying to point out, Mr. Speaker, that universities, wherever they are, look to three main sources for their revenue. Government grants, tuition fees of students, and monies from other sources. It is of general application right across the country, wherever universities are operated.

I like to think that we, as a government, are not doing too badly by our Uni- versities. Again I have inquired from other Jimvinces, so that the record In t be correct, to find out what they are doing, an again, not surprisingly, we find t Ontario, out of their total education budget, has set aside 34% for higher education. They are in a class by themselves. British Columbia comes next and they use 25% of their education budget for higher education. Manitoba, 21.8%; Saskatchewan, 20.4%; Alberta, 20%: Quebec, 16.5%; Nova Scotia, 21 % Prince Edward Island, 14.2%.

L. George Dewar: Are you sure fourteen is right?

Honourable Gordon L. Bennett: I would feel that my arithmetic as you main— tained yesterday, Sir, was, as yours, fairly accurate.

L. George Dewar: Is $10,000,000.00, your total budget? Honourable Gordon L. Bennett: $0,577,000.00, I think. L. George Dewar: That doesn’t give you 14%.

Honourable Gordon L. Bennett: If you look at the estimates and see what is there for education, including the grants to Dalhousie and Nova Scotia Technical College and so on, I think you will find it is 14.2%, Sir.

Before leaving this particular item, Mr. Speaker I would like to inform the House, if they have not already received the details, that your avernment has de- cided in this 1967 Centennial Year to establish six Centennial holarshi s to the value of $1,500.00 each. These scholarships will be tenable at either St. stan’s University or Prince of Wales College, and they will be for Island students who are continuing their education at the university level. We have arranged, through the Universities Co—ordinating Council, legislation, which doesn’t appear to be very pop-

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