Youth Minister the Hon. Pam Gordon stated yesterday.

And Education Minister the Hon. Clarence Terceira denied a PLP claim that there were insufficient public pre-schools for children whose parents could not afford to send them to private ones.

"We have established a Government pre-school in every parish,'' he said.

"The Government pre-school system and primary education are our greatest success stories.'' The United Bermuda Party candidates were responding to the Opposition's announcement that it would focus on improving early education if elected. They were accompanied by Mr. John Barritt, who is running in Devonshire South.

Shadow Education Minister Miss Jennifer Smith said the Progressive Labour Party was in favour of lowering the school entry age to four because "research shows that what happens between the ages of four and nine sets the stage for a student's entire educational experience.'' Such a foundation, she said, should not depend on whether parents could afford to send their children to pre-school -- as was now the case.

But Sen. Gordon said: "We don't need to be forcing education on four-year-olds who are not quite ready for school at that age. We feel the parents should determine that.'' Dr. Terceira added: "We don't agree with making school compulsory at the age of four. But our pre-schools would welcome any four-year-old whose parents felt he or she was ready.'' Dr. Terceira also outlined the party's education plans during yesterday's press conference, held at Bermuda College.

He said the results of local primary schoolchildren were better than those of their North American counterparts, which spoke well of the schools and their teachers.

Giving an update on Government's education restructuring plans, he said he expected them to be completely in place by 1997.

Plans to upgrade public high schools and turn them into middle schools had already been presented to a number of principals, he said. And over 200 Bermudian teachers had been trained in the middle school concept.

Moving to higher education, he said the National Education Foundation, which Government recently set up, was proof it was committed to making sure everyone had the opportunity to go to college.

If Government scholarship and award money ran out, the Foundation would guarantee student bank loans, he said.

He noted an extra $300,000 had been pumped into the education scholarship and award fund this year to meet increased demand.