Mr. Chase: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Waves of potential school closures are washing over communities in Edmonton and Calgary, but this government is looking the other way, claiming that the decisions are for the school boards to make. The truth is that, yes, city core neighbourhoods are losing students to the suburbs, but provincial policies are making the situation worse. To the minister: how are municipalities supposed to keep families in the city core when this government has a utilization policy that pushes schools out of these neighbourhoods?

Mr. Hancock: Mr. Speaker, under the Municipal Government Act when municipalities plan for their future neighbourhoods, they're requested to consult with school boards serving those neighbour­hoods to plan appropriately. One would suggest that that type of consultation and process should also work with respect to the redevelopment of area structure plans in the inner-city neighbour­hoods or the areas that are not in the suburbs. That type of consulta­tion has to work between local governments because local govern­ments, the municipalities and the school boards, are the ones that know what's in the best interests of their communities and for their students.

Mr. Chase: Thank you. The utilization formula is out of sync with the Learning Commission's class size recommendations. One of the Minister of Education's predecessors conceded five years ago that there were problems with the utilization policy. Why is the minister still standing idly by while outdated bureaucratic formulas are being used to hurt communities in Calgary and Edmonton, perhaps permanently?

Mr. Hancock: Well, Mr. Speaker, what's outdated is this member's understanding of how we do capital. In fact, utilization is a very minor part of the capital formula with respect to where new capital is allocated and how modernizations occur. What's most important is the health and safety of students. What's next important is the need for spaces in places where students live. Those are the things which go into the question of where we allocate capital. I'd like to say that there's enough capital to do everything we need all at once, but there isn't, so it's very important for school boards to use their infrastructure in the most effective way possible so that all of their students have a good educational opportunity.

Mr. Chase: Thank you. The first schools to close are the big ones, whose hallways are considered instructional spaces. Infrastructure grants were tied to student enrolment five years ago, a change that also punishes schools the moment students begin to flow out of the . . .

The Speaker: Hon. member. Please, please, please. Remember, you signed the paper. No preambles. You signed the paper.

Mr. Chase: Thank you. I will use that in the future, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker: No. Now. Get to the question.

Mr. Chase: Will the Minister of Infrastructure re-examine this policy before it accelerates the decline of city core neighbourhoods in our major cities?

The Speaker: Perfect.

Mr. Hancock: Mr. Speaker, school boards should and school boards are making appropriate decisions with respect to where the schools are and what resources they need for their students. I would say that it's very irresponsible to suggest that a school board is closing a needed school because the hallways are too wide. That would be ridiculous, and I don't believe it's happening.