The opposition Progressive Conservatives are calling for a province-wide moratorium on school closures, as parent groups in cities and small towns across Ontario lobby their school trustees to keep schools open. "There is a crisis in rural Ontario, that has now grown to the cities, on school closures," Brown told a news conference. Although school closure decisions are made by local boards, Brown blames the provincial government. "It's a system the Liberals have set up that actually rewards a school board for closing schools," he said. "They actually tell boards they're not going to get any capital funding unless they close schools."

Source: CBC News March 07, 2017 16:30 UTC