A former chief education officer has called for the Island's new Commissioner of Education to be given proper powers to implement change in public schools.

Joseph Christopher, who was Chief Education Officer (CEO) for about a decade until his retirement in 2006, told The Royal Gazette that the role should be similar to the Commissioner of Police.

Asked if he welcomed the idea of a Commissioner, he said: "It depends on what the Commissioner will do. If it's head of department with full responsibilities like the Commissioner of Police then that makes sense."

Dr. Christopher spoke to this newspaper after writing a letter to the editor which said the Commissioner "should be head and have total control over all aspects of the Department of Education as does any other department head".

Asked to elaborate, he said: "I think that the Commissioner should have more power than the CEO had.

"The powers were limited by law. The PS (Permanent Secretary) was head of the department and I don't think that should have been the case."

This newspaper reported on Monday that a new bill has been tabled in the House of Assembly outlining the role of the Commissioner and a new, expanded Board of Education.

Dr. Christopher wants the new Commissioner to have the power to appoint principals and teachers, a function he said was normally carried out by the Public Service Commission on the recommendation of the Education Permanent Secretary (PS).

He said in his letter that it was also important to have a PS running the Ministry overall and a civil servant in charge of the Department of Education.

"That Ministry may include other departments from time to time.

"The Ministry and Department have been viewed as a single entity too often. They are distinct and should be recognised as such."

The Ministry of Education has not answered questions about whether the Commissioner will replace both the CEO and the PS.

Last year's Hopkins report on the public school system suggested there was no need for both jobs.

Dr. Christopher's letter said he hoped the new Board — which Education Minister Randy Horton claims will have more teeth that its predecessor — would not "neuter the new Commissioner such that he or she will have little influence over those matters that will determine the success of the functions for which he is accountable".