Public servants broke their official code of conduct and engaged in “political activities” when they posted anti-BCTF comments on Ministry of Education-run Facebook and Twitter streams Thursday afternoon, according to experts.

Hundreds of Facebook and Twitter users responded after two politically charged comments were posted at about 3:15 p.m. on the B.C. Education Plan’s Facebook and Twitter accounts, which were started in 2011 by the Ministry of Education to communicate to citizens.

The nearly identical posts read: “$375 million for more specialists, teachers, and educational assistants. BCTF’s priority? Expanding BCTF union ranks — not support that students actually need. Visit http://bcparentinfo.ca/ for the latest news.”

The posts were made by government staff during working hours under the Ministry of Education moniker and as such violate standards of conduct on political activity, according to Richard Leblanc, associate professor of law, governance and ethics at Toronto’s York University.

Leblanc said: “Stating a fact is one thing, but it’s a bit of an outrageous comment the very last one: ‘expanding union ranks — not support that students actually need.’

“It’s giving the impression that the ministry is not apolitical and it’s very important to separate that and not to use resources that belong to the taxpayer to influence opinion,” Leblanc said Friday evening. “Because the union doesn’t have that counterpoint — they just have the resources of their membership.”

Ministry spokesman Scott Sutherland said he couldn’t comment on whether the posts broke the code. In an emailed statement, Sutherland said “it’s entirely appropriate to explain to and inform British Columbians, especially with parents, what the issues are, and what the government is doing to address them.”

The government can spend up to $335,000 on its campaign to educate parents during the labour dispute, Sutherland said.

That includes a maximum budget of $15,000 on advertising, which includes promoting posts like Thursday’s on social media.

Dermod Travis, executive director of the government watchdog IntegrityBC, said the posts amount to “pouring fuel on the fire” of a “highly contentious dispute.”

“That’s the type of meme that should come out of the B.C. Liberal party and not out of the government of B.C.,” Travis said. “If Christy Clark had got up and said ‘BCTF’s priority is expanding,’ she’s a politician — she has the capacity to take a partisan stand to that level.

“Because this really goes to being an attack ad, but it’s not the role of the government of British Columbia to be trying to divide and conquer.”

The government has a duty to provide people with information “strictly on what their offer” is to the BCTF, Travis added.

“Part of the problem, is that the B.C. government, under Premier Clark, has politicized the communications and engagement department, where you have a prominent partisan Liberal who is now the acting deputy minister,” Travis said.

“You have other officials in that department who have partisan Liberal ties and I think the difficulty is they haven’t been able to leave their political baggage behind and perform a role that is a role for the government of British Columbia, not for the B.C. Liberal party.”

Travis said Ontario is a model for B.C., pointing out that all government advertising in general has to be vetted by the auditor general before it can be used.

mhager@postmedia.com

twitter.com/MikePHager

Click here to report a typo or visit vancouversun.com/typo.

Is there more to this story? We'd like to hear from you about this or any other stories you think we should know about. CLICK HERE or go to vancouversun.com/moretothestory