Minister Lisa Beare said the government had made administrative errors that only came to light over past few days
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VICTORIA — Greater Victoria school trustees, fired by the province after refusing to allow police in schools, were expected to get their jobs back after the province botched its defence of a lawsuit by the trustees.
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On Monday, just as the case was to go to trial, the provincial lawyer admitted the Education Ministry failed to disclose text messages it was ordered to hand over months ago, and withdrew the province’s defence in the case.
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Education Minister Lisa Beare told reporters that the “administrative errors” came to light a few days ago and her staff advised that reinstating the trustees was the best path forward.
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Sunrise
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She said she hadn’t seen the text messages and would not say whether anybody would be fired as a result of the error.
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“This decision by the province is the responsible step after acknowledging these significant errors,” said Beare, who again voiced her support for police liaison officers being in schools.
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“The court will decide what happens next in the coming week at the scheduled hearing, and we will respect that process. This is not the outcome we were working toward.
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“While I can’t speak to further details, given the ongoing judicial review, I can say that our priority is clear: students need stable, safe learning environments, and parents and caregivers need confidence that safety supports are in place.”
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The nine trustees were fired in January 2025 after a dispute over the board’s cancellation of the school police liaison program over concerns about its cost and the treatment of teachers and students who are Indigenous, Black or a person of colour. However, area First Nations supported the liaison program.
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The trustees challenged their firing in court, requesting a judicial review that was expected to be heard in Victoria over eight days starting Monday.
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However, lawyers for the board received new documents from the province on Saturday, including text messages between the associate deputy minister of education and a Victoria police deputy chief, and between the associate deputy minister and the special adviser who was appointed to assist the board in revising a school safety plan required by the province.
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The messages should have been disclosed by the province under a court order in March.
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The province was supposed to hand over written records, including documents, emails, text messages, notes and memos, that were put before the minister to make a safety plan order and an order to appoint a special adviser, as well as all records of communication among the minister and several police departments, the superintendent, Safer Schools Together and the special adviser.
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Sean Hern, one of the board’s lawyers, said they had been arguing the termination was a setup, while the province’s lawyers had dismissed that allegation as a conspiracy.
