KINGSTON, Ont. (CUP) – Cautious optimism quickly gave way to discontent and frustration among student leaders as Finance Minister Ralph Goodale tabled the federal budget in the House of Commons Feb. 23.
The heads of both national student lobby groups had hoped to see the current $10.8 billion in debt among Canadian students addressed, as well as ever-rising tuition fees.
Instead, they faced a budget that hardly made mention of higher education.
“This is the worst budget for education spending in a long, long time,” said a disappointed George Soule, national chair of the Canadian Federation of Students.
“How can you ignore a fundamental social building block of this country?” asked a frustrated James Kusie, national director of the Canadian Alliance of Student Associations.
The optimism started building last month when provincial finance ministers met in Ottawa and declared post-secondary education their next priority after health care.
Then the federal finance committee recommended a dedicated cash transfer to the provinces to boost funding for post-secondary education, something the student groups had long lobbied for.
Pre-budget predictions also centred on propping up Canada’s social programmes, which took a hit in the mid-90s during Prime Minister Paul Martin’s days as finance minister.
But all that momentum was crushed on budget day, said Kusie and Soule, when the document failed miserably to respond to the needs of post-secondary education.
“This budget is about as exciting as the current NHL season,” Kusie said, adding Goodale’s decision to make this budget a plan for the next five years, instead of the usual two, is particularly concerning for students.
The budget shows the Liberal minority was more concerned with pleasing opposition parties and avoiding an election than with meeting the needs of Canadians, Soule said. He said the Liberals shied away from commitments to higher education made during the election campaign last June — promises like the dedicated transfer payments for education.
A few overtures were made towards higher education in the budget. Student loan forgiveness was granted in the event of a student’s death or disability, $375 million over five years was granted to federal research granting councils and $75 million over five years will fund indirect research costs at universities.
But the $15 million earmarked for this year doesn’t come close to meeting the demand for research infrastructure, said James Turk, executive director of the Canadian Association of University Teachers.
“This budget absolutely fails post-secondary education,” Turk said.
A $30-million investment is needed this year to maintain the current level of funding for universities to pay for lab space and equipment, he said.
Turk said he read through the entire 350-page budget document and was shocked to find virtually no mention of post-secondary education.
Other commitments in the budget include $5 billion for a national child care program, $12.8 billion in new equipment for the Canadian military, and $3.4 billion for foreign aid.
