Finance Committee Misses the Mark, Students Give Budget Recommendations
Failing Grade

OTTAWA , Dec. 10 /CNW Telbec/ - The federal Finance Committee's budget recommendations released yesterday, ignore the fundamental issues of quality and affordability of Canada's colleges and universities.

"The Finance Committee completely missed the mark," said Katherine Giroux-Bougard, Chairperson of the Canadian Federation of Students. "Despite students facing record high tuition fees and increasing student to faculty member ratios, the Committee failed to recommend any measures to improve quality and affordability."

For post-secondary education the report recommends creating two new tax credits and promoting education service exports. Neither of these recommendations were contained within the Canadian Federation of Students' submission to the Finance Committee which called on the government to convert education related tax credits to up-front grants, develop a cash transfer payment for post-secondary education governed by a federal act, and remove the cap on funding for Aboriginal education.

"Recent budgets have increased core funding and created Canada's first national system of grants," added Giroux-Bougard. "We hope the government will continue this trend and offer something meaningful to students and their families."

The 2007 federal budget increased transfer payments for post-secondary education by $800 million , the 2008 budget created Canada's first national system of grants and the 2009 budget included $2 billion for college and university infrastructure.

The Canadian Federation of Students is Canada's largest student organisation. It is composed of over 80 university and college students' associations with a combined membership of over one half million students in all ten provinces.

The Canadian Federation of Students' submission to the Finance Committee is available online at www.cfs-fcee.ca

For further information: Katherine Giroux-Bougard, National Chairperson, [phone]