Slob fights teacher shortage with expected windfall
Twenty million euros last week, Minister Arie Slob pledged to tackle the teacher shortage. The minister is financing fifteen million euros of this with a windfall that he does not expect until next year.
Picture: National government
While the debate the minister came unexpectedly to the House of Representatives over the bridge with around seven million euros for lateral entrants in 2018 and 2019, and a one-off thirteen million for the regional approach to the teacher shortage. No extra money for education, but found within the OCW budget in other pots that had not been fully used up. Money that would normally flow back to the state treasury, but that Slob can now use for the teacher shortage.
Financial cover
The minister specifically mentioned two jars. Five million euros comes from the post of the teachers register. And fifteen million from a "supposed underspending" of the Teachers' Grant, referring to "this calendar year". GroenLinks tried to get clarification about the financial coverage with an interruption during the debate, but the explanation raised questions.
Ministry of Education, Culture and Science spokesperson: 'We are committed to it. If it turns out that more applications have been made and less money remains from the Teachers' Grant, then we will have to solve this in a different way'
Because what exactly is it? This year there will indeed be fifteen million euros left over from the Lerarenbeurs. But Slob uses it in the OCW budget 2019 to deal with a setback with the pupil and student estimates next year. In previous years there was always money left over from the Teachers' Grant.
With the approach to the teacher shortage, the minister is now anticipating a new surplus in 2019, a spokesperson confirms when asked by the Education magazine. “We are taking an advance on that.”
Prognosis
It remains to be seen whether fifteen million euros will actually remain. “It is a forecast,” said the spokesman. How solid is this cover then? “We are committed to it. If it turns out that more applications have been made and less money remains from the Teachers' Grant, then we will have to solve this in a different way.”
For the current school year, 2018/2019, applications could be submitted until the end of June. In front of the Teachers' Fair 2019/2020, the application period runs from April to the end of June next year.
