The Bermuda Union of Teachers delivered a broadside at the Government yesterday, declaring its track record on education “abysmal”.

But the union’s statement elicited a swift response from the One Bermuda Alliance questioning its use of Budget book numbers under the heading of education.

It came after the BUT announced that election campaigns should not use students as “pawns for political fodder”.

Quoting from past Budget books, the statement criticised the $19 million reduction in 2014 to 2015, when education’s allocation fell from $146.5 million to $127.1 million.

From 2016 to 2017, the budget for education rose from a low point of $124.9 million to $127 million, which still fell short of the 2015 level, and “does not even get us close” to the 2013 allocation, the union added.

However, responding with the BUT’s own statement that “numbers tell the truth”, an OBA statement showed the variance in Budget items from year to year.For example, the Budget estimates from the high point of 2014-15 included departments that were not included in the subsequent year.

While $8.677 million was allocated for the Ministry of Education and Economic Development headquarters, $114.9 million for the Department of Education, and $16.9 million for the Bermuda College, that Budget included other items such as $3.2 million for the Registrar of Companies, $900,000 for Telecommunications, $962,000 for E-Commerce and $1 million for Energy to arrive at $146.5 million.

For 2015-16, conversely, the figure of $127.1 million was made up of funding only for the Ministry of Education, the Department of Education and Bermuda College.

• To read the full statement, click on the PDF under “Related Media”

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