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More than 1,000 teachers will be hired in B.C. starting this month, as part of a $50-million interim deal to partly address the recent Supreme Court of Canada ruling on classroom conditions.

In Surrey alone, where about 11-12 per cent of B.C. students go to school, it will mean between 100 and 150 more teachers and funding of about $5.5 million this year.

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The deal restores about one-third of the teachers necessary to fully implement the ruling — which B.C. Teachers’ Federation president Glen Hansman estimates would cost a total of about $300 million. The $50-million interim deal is for the second half of this school year, so represents about $100 million on an annual basis.

November’s Supreme Court ruling restored class-size, class-composition and specialist teacher language that was deleted from teachers’ contracts in 2002.

“This is new funding, added to this year’s budget for education that will be included in our February budget in the Ministry of Education,” said education minister Mike Bernier. “This will be new money and ongoing funds for school districts around the province. And this is just the preliminary first steps of negotiations.”