Students and university faculty are hopeful Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s first budget will provide additional funding for universities and programs for young people when it is unveiled on March 22.
Although administering post-secondary education falls under provincial control, the federal government can transfer cash to provinces, inject funding into research and development, or create jobs for youth.
On the day of Ontario’s announcement that it will expand grants to cover the average cost of tuition for students coming from families making less than $50,000 per year, the Canadian Federation of Students (CFS) called on the federal government to do more to funding post-secondary student tuition.
“We’re looking to the upcoming federal budget and saying ‘Your move, Prime Minister Trudeau,’” said Bilan Arte, CFS national chairperson, in a press release.
The CFS submitted a number of recommendations to the House of Commons’ finance committee during pre-budget public consultations.
The national student advocacy group asked the government to double its investment into non-repayable grants through the Canada Student Grant Program (CSGP) through their proposed “Post-Secondary Education Act,” which has a goal of providing free post-secondary tuition to all Canadians.
The CFS also recommended the removal of the funding cap from the Post-Secondary Student Support Program (PSSSP), which provides financial help to Aboriginal Canadian students, and doubling investment for the Youth Employment Strategy (YES), which includes the Canada Summer Jobs program.
On Feb. 12, Trudeau announced the federal government would double the number of jobs for students provided through the Canada Summer Jobs program from 34,000 to 70,000 by 2018. Spending for the program, as a result, will increase by $113 million each year for the next three years.
During the 2015 election campaign, Trudeau promised to spend $300 million every year for three years on YES. Youth employment sits at 13.1 per cent, which is double the national average.
At the announcement, Trudeau hinted more funding for youths could come in the 2016 budget. He also mentioned work would be done to allow international students to become permanent residents more easily.
Immigration Minister John McCallum said on March 14 he intends to consult with the provinces about reforming the current Express Entry system, which links employers to foreign skilled workers. Thousands of students have been denied permanent residency because the system favours workers arriving from abroad.
Trudeau also promised during the election campaign to increase the maximum federal student grants low-income full-time students can receive to $3,000, up from $1,500. The Liberals also wanted to not require students to pay off their loans to the federal government until they have received a job paying over $25,000 after graduation.
Anticipating the budget, Carleton University economics student Asha Bains said she hopes more resources will be devoted to job creation and tuition reduction.
“We’re here at school trying to get an education and contribute to society, but without any employment opportunities available to us after we graduate, we have no way to pay off our debt,” she said.
With the Liberals projecting an $18-billion deficit, Paul Kershaw, a University of British Columbia professor, said he’s concerned student issues will continue to be underrepresented at the national level.
“When looking at total social spending, federal and provincial governments currently combine to spend around $33,000 per person aged 65-plus compared to less than $12,000 per person under age 45,” said Kershaw, who is the author of a book on federal spending by age demographic.
According to Kershaw, the Liberal’s central educational promise was to spend $850 million to the CSGP by 2020, up from $750 million, to be paid for by using extra cash from eliminating post-secondary and textbook tax credits.
“Research has shown that it is advantageous for students to receive financial support in advance of paying their education expenses, rather than make a claim for a tax-delivered subsidy after they incurred the costs,” Kershaw said. “Still, this policy change will not result in any new net investment in post-secondary by the federal government.”
In terms of how the budget could benefit post-secondary institutions, Carleton political science professor Jeff Sahadeo said he hopes for an increase in grant money available through federal institutions such as the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council.
“‘Starved’ might be a strong word, but certainly the amount of money available for grants has been reduced [under the Conservatives],” Sahadeo said, who added the number of grant applications has dropped from approximately 40 to 25 per cent since 2006.
Sahadeo also said he thinks there’s a “real hope and uncertainty with this government.”
“I would imagine, with Trudeau’s emphasis on education may have something to do with some kind of modernization program or technology, or something like community-based learning,” he added. “He’s big on Katimavik and getting these kinds of things back in. So he may put higher education in that kind of role, which would fit very well with what Carleton is doing.”
