Students from across Ontario present MPPs with plan to reduce tuition fees
Students from across Ontario are at Queen's Park this week to present to Members
of Provincial Parliament (MPPs) students' vision for improving access to and quality
of college and university education in the province. Students are providing
recommendations for a new tuition fee framework in Ontario, which is expected
from government in the coming weeks.
"With tuition fees in Ontario the highest in the country and student debt hitting
record levels, the new tuition fee framework must provide immediate relief from
high tuition fees," said Sarah Jayne King, Chairperson for the Canadian Federation of
Students-Ontario. "MPPs from all corners of the province need to make students and
youth a priority by reducing tuition fees."
Since 2006, tuition fees have increased by as much as 71 per cent. Students and
graduates in Ontario now owe the federal and provincial governments over $9
billion in student loans. Per-student funding for post-secondary education in
Ontario is lower than any other province in Canada.
A full list and costing of students' recommendations can be found in the document,
Changing Priorities: Moving Towards Affordable Post-Secondary Education.
Students are calling for additional funding for post-secondary education to reduce
tuition fees by 30 per cent over three years. Students are also recommending the
province invest in making graduate education more affordable, put an end to unfair
institutional tuition fee policies and enforce more strict compliance measures for
ancillary fees.
"With students from every region of the province descending on Queen's Park this
week, MPPs will have the opportunity to hear from those who are impacted most by
high tuition fees and underfunding of colleges and universities," said King.
Students will be meeting MPPs from every party and from all regions of the
province, including the Minister of Training Colleges and Universities Brad DuGuid
and Deputy Premier Deb Matthews, NDP Leader Andrea Horwath and PC Critic for
Training, Colleges and Universities Rob Leone.
The Canadian Federation of Students-Ontario represents more than 300,000 college,
undergraduate and graduate students from Windsor to Thunder Bay.