Quebec university student unions joining forces to fight province's tuition hike
Jessica Issac lives in Etobicoke, Ont., and was planning on sending her daughter to the studio arts program at Concordia even though it was a bit pricier than the other universities.
It may soon be a lot more after the Quebec government announced plans to nearly double tuition for out-of-province students. With the extra cost of housing, suddenly the cost for many is out of reach.
"You’re going from kind of $20-28,000 per year, and for a four-year course. That’s quite a bit and and it’s made of us reconsider even applying to Concordia, which was our top choice last week," Issac said.
The student unions of Concordia and McGill are coming together to denounce the CAQ's tuition hike because of fears that it will price-out many Canadian students and saddle them with more debt.
In a joint statement, student leaders from both universities wrote, "We ask that the province consider the obstacles that this will cause for access to education and the unnecessary financial strains on those who wish to study in our universities."
"It’s really important that education remains accessible and affordable," said Liam Gaither, vice-president of external at the Students' Society of McGill University.
The institution that might be most affected by the hike is Bishop's University in Lennoxville, Que., where 30 per cent of students are from outside the province.
"When we initially found out, we were fearful, and I would even say angry, for the future of the university," said Sophia Stacey, president of the Bishop's University Students Representative Council.
- Listen on CJAD 800: Addressing the shortfalls of Quebec's tuition fee hike
Stacey said they’re asking for a meeting with the government to justify the hike.
"I would say to minister Pascale Déry, who’s the minister of higher education in Quebec, that, as the minister, her mandate is to protect these institutions and the students who put their trust in them," she said.
The government maintains the new school fees will save taxpayers $110 million a year, even though the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal says out-of-province and international students bring in more than half a billion dollars to the local economy.
"The financial reality is that out-of-province students are paying into their education way more than the government is," Stacey said.
Student governments at all three of Quebec's English universities say if the government doesn’t back down, they’re prepared to mobilize.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
What weather experts say to expect this summer in Canada
Get ready to feel the heat, Canada. Weather experts are predicting more sunshine and warmer temperatures for the summer.
Tessa Virtue reveals she's expecting her first child. Here's what Canadians had to say
Canadian figure-skating icon Tessa Virtue is expecting her first child, she revealed via social media Tuesday.
CNN Exclusive: A federal grand jury may soon hear from Sean 'Diddy' Combs' accusers
Federal investigators are preparing to bring accusers of music mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs before a federal grand jury, two sources familiar with the probe tell CNN — signaling the U.S. Justice Department is moving toward potentially seeking an indictment of Combs.
P.E.I. kiteboarder 'lucky to be alive' after shark attack in Turks and Caicos
A professional kiteboarder from P.E.I. says he has been seriously injured in a shark attack that occurred while he was snorkelling in the Turks and Caicos Islands last week.
In bizarre provocation, North Korea flies trash, manure balloons over the South
North Korea flew hundreds of balloons carrying trash and manure toward South Korea in one of its most bizarre provocations against its rival in years, prompting the South’s military to mobilize chemical and explosive response teams to recover objects and debris in different parts of the country.
Canada announces $11B for military aircraft training
Canada has announced an $11.2-billion contract to improve training platforms for the military, including the purchase of 70 training aircraft for the Future Aircrew Training program.
'Scandals and secrets': On board the world's most exclusive private residential ship
It’s a floating city exclusively home to the 1 per cent, a playground for multimillionaires and billionaires that circumnavigates the world's oceans.
'Unruly passenger' forces WestJet flight to make emergency landing in B.C.
A WestJet flight heading to Calgary had to make an emergency landing in northern B.C. Monday due to an incident involving an 'unruly passenger,' Mounties say.
Nissan warns owners of older vehicles not to drive them due to risk of exploding air bag inflators
Nissan is urging the owners of about 84,000 older vehicles to stop driving them because their Takata air bag inflators have an increased risk of exploding in a crash and hurling dangerous metal fragments.