OTTAWA, March 1, 2012 /CNW/ - Students across the country are standing in solidarity with Quebec students who are striking to fight tuition fee increases that would put education out of reach of many students and their families. The Quebec Liberal Government has pledged to increase tuition fees by $325 a year for the next five years, an increase that would harm the most accessible education system in the country.
"The last thing we need in this country is to lose the model of accessible education that has been built in Quebec over generations", said Roxanne Dubois, National Chairperson of the Canadian Federation of Students. "Increasing tuition fees is a sure way to deny average Canadians an education and a chance at a decent life."
Currently, the average tuition fees in Canada are $5,366 and are highest in Ontario at $6,640. Tuition fees have increased at twice the rate of inflation in most provinces in the past thirty years, largely due to a lack of funding from the federal government. Outside of Quebec, high fees have increased reliance on student loans, causing students to take on more debt than ever before.
"Tuition fees are much too high in Canada and they act as the main barrier preventing young people from pursuing their post-secondary education," added Dubois. "Quebec should not be following the path of other provinces who have failed to provide accessible education and should instead be investing in its exemplary education system by keeping it accessible."
The Canadian Federation of Students is Canada's largest student organisation, uniting more that one-half million students in all ten provinces. The Federation and its predecessor organisations have represented students in Canada since 1927.
Roxanne Dubois, National Chairperson, 613-232-7394, [email protected]
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