Parents ‘should foot education bill’

An economist and management consultant has put forward several suggestions which he says can alleviate some of Government’s burden of financing tertiary education.
According to managing director and chief executive officer of Abelian Consulting Services Inc., Ryan Straughn, parents who are university graduates should finance their children’s tertiary tuition.
“Right now there are people who are sending their children overseas to all kinds of universities and they pay for it willingly,” he said.
Straughn was speaking during a panel discussion on Financing Education in Barbados hosted by the Barbados Economics Society at the Savannah Hotel on Thursday night.
He also suggested that Government could limit the access of university graduates to the full benefits of income tax allowances for the first five to ten years after graduation.
Furthermore, he said there should be some “means testing” for certain services at the primary and secondary level including the textbook loan scheme and the uniform grant, although the truly vulnerable should be protected.
Straughn, however, cautioned that Government should not “seek to withdraw from providing space” at the University of the West but should do what it took within reason to further expand attendance.