The cost of going to university has skyrocketed in recent years. A little more than a decade ago, a good summer job combined with an after school job or work term, would go a long way towards paying for your expenses. Things have changed as the number of students attending post-secondary institutions has grown and schools have had to raise tuitions to cover more and more of their growing costs.

According to Statistics Canada, undergraduate students paid an average of $4,347 in tuition fees for the 2006/2007 academic year, up from $4,211 the year before. This is almost triple the average of $1,464 in 1990/1991. Here in BC, average undergraduate tuition has risen from $1,808 in 1990/91 to $4,960 last year.

Each year the federal government contributes large sums of money to post-secondary education. Through the Canada Social Transfer, the Government of Canada provides the provinces with $2.4 billion annually to support post-secondary education. In last year’s budget, our government announced we will be increasing this funding by an additional $800 million this year and by an additional three percent every year thereafter. This is our way of ensuring long-term, predictable support for provinces and territories, and greater transparency and accountability to Canadians.

Our government also provides direct funding to students and their families through scholarships, loans and grants, savings incentives, and funding for research. This direct support totalled nearly $6 billion last year. Of this amount, $1.7 billion in assistance came through the tax system, including tuition, education and textbook tax credits, and carry-forward of unused credits; $2 billion was provided through grants, scholarships and loan programs, including the Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation and Canada Student Loans Program; and $2.3 billion funded research and related activities in post-secondary institutions.

For students who have Canada Student Loans, the government provides measures to assist students if they are temporarily unable to make payments because of unemployment or low income. For instance, the government will pay the interest on student loans for up to a maximum of four and a half years after graduation. During this period the student will not have to make any payments on their loan.

If a student experiences long-term financial difficulties following graduation, the federal government may lower the principle of their loan and reduce their monthly loan payment to an affordable level based on their family income. The reductions can total up to $26,000.

The federal government also provides grants to students from low income families. First-time students entering their first year at any designated post-secondary educational institution may be eligible for a grant that covers one half of tuition costs, up to a maximum of $3,000. There are also grants available for students with dependents and for students who have a permanent disability.

Since forming the government, my party has spent hundreds of millions of dollars to improve accessibility to post-secondary education. Among others initiatives, we have:

• Expanded eligibility for Canada Student Loans to more middle-income families by reducing the amount parents are expected to contribute;
• Eliminated federal income tax on all income from scholarships, bursaries or fellowships;
• Created a new Textbook Tax Credit that will provide a tax credit of $65 per month for full-time post-secondary students and $20 a month for part-time students;
• Eliminated the $4,000 limit on annual registered education savings plans (RESP) contributions;
• Increased the lifetime limit on RESP contributions to $50,000 from $42,000; and
• Increased the maximum annual amount of a Canada Education Savings Grant that can be paid in any year to $500 from $400.

In total, the Government of Canada will spend over $8.4 billion this year in support of post-secondary education through transfers, direct spending, and tax measures. This makes post-secondary education one of the largest expenditures of the federal government.