Funds for reform in education increased - ministry

It was not true that funds for the reform in education had been reduced, the ministry said.

Referring to a statement by the shadow minister for education Evarist Bartolo, the Education Ministry said that this year the government voted another €3.1 million for the reform which should be added on to the €4.4 million voted last year, bringing the total in two years to €7.5 million.

The ministry said that the reform in education strategy was spread over a number of years.

The ministry also referred to Mr Bartolo’s claim that only €19 million out of the €46 million voted for capital expenditure last year were utilised.

It said that the €46 million were not just for education but also for sports and culture.

Moreover, there were bills which had not yet been paid for works carried out on capital projects. The capital expenditure also included EU funds which had to be spent on projects carried out over a number of years.