Conservatives must face student debt crisis

Tuition rates expected to climb 13 per cent over next four years

OTTAWA – The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives released a study today that should sound the alarm for education policymakers around the country. The CCPA finds that tuition rates will climb an average of 13 per cent over the next four years, making access to post-secondary education even more difficult for young Canadians.

Already, Canadian students have an average of $28,000 of federal debt alone when they graduate, according to Statistics Canada. Already, they meet a youth unemployment rate of 14.1 per cent - twice that of the nation-wide average. And now, they face ever higher debt loads that force post-secondary education out of reach for some young Canadians.

“Young Canadians are saddled with lifelong debt sentences” said NDP critic for Post-Secondary Education Dan Harris (Scarborough Southwest). “This problem isn’t going away – it’s getting worse. New Democrats call on the government to work with the provinces and territories to reduce the costs of post-secondary education and to tackle, head on, the problems of affordability and student debt.”