Minister Louis Galea should be congratulated for launching the 10 new colleges.

This initiative is truly a step in the right direction, and hopefully will serve to bring about much-needed reform to state primary and secondary education.

However I am truly disappointed that he has decided to “baptise” these colleges using religious (that is, Catholic) names for all but one of the colleges.

First of all it is sad that Minister Galea did not consider it befitting to name the colleges after a number of very deserving Maltese, living or not.

Secondly, the decision smacks of neo-clericalism and Catholic nepotism.

These colleges belong to the state and our state is secular. The attempt to brand these state schools as Church schools is an insult to all those who are not Catholic as well affront to others who uphold the separation between Church and state.

Edward Fenech

Attard