Another Liberal MLA pans P.E.I. school closure recommendation

Another Liberal MLA is speaking out against the school closures recommended in western P.E.I.

Pat Murphy, whose district includes Bloomfield Elementary and St. Louis Elementary, said he doesn't see any need to close the schools.

"It's going to have a devastating impact on the community," he said Thursday on CBC Radio's Island Morning.

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The P.E.I. Public Schools Branch on Tuesday released its school review on how to address underutilized or overcrowded schools in the province. St. Louis and Bloomfield were two of five schools recommended for closure.

On Wednesday, Hal Perry, the Liberal MLA for Tignish-Palmer Road, said he would fight to keep the schools open.

Murphy said there is no benefit to closing the schools even if the buildings are still be available for the communities to use.

"In St. Louis's case they have a very small community," he said. "They don't have much of a budget to the operation of the building the heat, the lights, janitor staff.

"The school in Bloomfield is an unincorporated area that doesn't even have a community council or anything like that to look after it."

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