Ontario Premier Doug Ford is signalling he will stand firm on his government’s changes to student loans as opposition to a major restructuring of the program grows in the province.
As part of a push to sustain the struggling post-secondary sector, the province will inject new cash into colleges and universities and allow them to raise tuition fees by two per cent a year.
The changes also shifted how OSAP operates, moving away from grants to offer students more loans instead.
The existing proportion of OSAP was about 85 per cent grants to 15 per cent loans, the government said, but starting this fall, students will receive a maximum of 25 per cent of their OSAP funding as grants.
Now, advocates and opponents are pushing the premier to reverse course, accusing him of trying to balance the books on the backs of students.
“Doug Ford has shown that he doesn’t mind a good flip-flop, so we’re going to hand him an opportunity,” Ontario NDP Leader Marit Stiles said.
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“Families that I’m hearing from are furious. Not only is this an attack on students saddling them with massive debt when they least need it … but it is also a hit on our economy.”
The NDP has launched a campaign to “save OSAP,” urging students and families to sign its petition and write to their local MPPs.
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“We have been contacted already by thousands of people, thousands of students,” Stiles said. “Even the premier acknowledged he’s getting thousands of calls. No kidding. My phone was lighting up all weekend; I expect every MPP was getting lots of calls.”
Bella Fischer, with the College Student Alliance, said the OSAP changes and hiked tuition fees could put some off college or university by making them pay more for longer.
“They’re putting basically all of the burden onto the students,” she said. “The decisions in life later are going to also be affected because they’re going to have more debt to pay.”
Ford, however, justified the decision at an unrelated event on Wednesday, saying the existing system was “unsustainable” and claiming the government had been “paying for everyone’s education.”
He added, “The most vulnerable are going to be taken care of, that’s clear and simple. It’s going to be 25 per cent — and that puts us in the middle of the pack.”
Ontario Liberal MPP John Fraser said the premier didn’t understand the impact on students.
“He’s out of touch with people’s everyday lives, what families go through to make sure that their kids get an education and are ready for the future,” he said. “They give up a lot.”
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