Human Resources Committee on Feb. 12th, 2026

[The Chair (Robert Morrissey (Egmont, Lib.)), Liberal, Bobby Morrissey]

Good morning, committee members. The clerk has advised me that we have a quorum. Those who are attending virtually have been sound-tested and approved.

Welcome to meeting number 25 of the Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills, Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities. We are going to hear from witnesses on Bill C-15 today.

Today's meeting is taking place in a hybrid format pursuant to the Standing Orders of the House. Before I begin, I have a couple of points.

You can participate in this meeting in the official language of your choice. If you're in the room, make sure you select the channel that will give you the language that you choose to participate in. For those appearing virtually, click on the globe icon at the bottom of your Surface and choose the language. If there is an interruption in interpretation, please get my attention and we'll suspend while it is being corrected.

Please ensure your devices are on silent mode, and please refrain from tapping on the microphone boom, for the protection of the translators.

I would also like to remind participants to please wait until I recognize you by name before you participate. If you need to get my attention, put your hand up and wait until I recognize you.

Today we have the first panel. We had three witnesses, but the witness who was having an issue with their headset continued to have it and then chose to submit his brief to the committee. The issues could not be overcome from where he was at.

Today we have two witnesses appearing. From the Canadian Dental Hygienists Association, we have Ondina Love, chief executive officer.

From the National Association of Career Colleges, we have Michael Sangster, chief executive officer.

Each organization has five minutes for opening comments. We'll begin with Madam Love for five minutes or less.

You have the floor.

[Ondina Love, Chief Executive Officer, Canadian Dental Hygienists Association]

Thank you, Chair and members of the committee, for the opportunity to appear today on behalf of the Canadian Dental Hygienists Association, or CDHA.

Canada's 35,000 dental hygienists are frontline oral health professionals. The divisions of Bill C-15 before you—34, 36 and 44—may appear technical, but each has meaningful implications for health equity, child well-being and access to preventive care, particularly in underserved communities.

CDHA is a national voice for dental hygienists. Our members work in private practice, public health, long-term care, indigenous communities, educational institutions and independent practice settings. They deliver essential preventive services, oral health assessments, scaling, root planing, fluoride application, oral cancer screening and health promotion.

Dental hygienists are primary health care professionals whose work is central to early intervention and the successful implementation of federal programs like the Canadian dental care plan, or CDCP. Budget 2025 includes a commitment to protecting the CDCP, which covers a wide range of preventive services to help people avoid serious and costly oral health problems. More than 27,000 oral health providers are now participating nationally, and dental hygienists play a key prevention-focused role in its success.

Sustaining and strengthening the prevention portion of the CDCP is essential to protecting what matters to Canadians—affordable, accessible, preventive oral health care, especially for individuals and families facing financial or geographic barriers.

Relating to division 44, the national school food program act, CDHA strongly supports the vision that all children and youth should have access to nutritious food at school in an inclusive environment. Nutrition is the cornerstone of oral health, and the foods and beverages children consume at school directly influence their risk for tooth decay, one of the most common, painful and preventable childhood diseases. Nutrition is oral health policy.

A national school food program can reduce health disparities, but only if oral health considerations are embedded from the start. Excess free sugars remain the leading dietary driver of tooth decay. Without clear guardrails, even well-intentioned programs can worsen health outcomes. CDHA recommends embedding sugar-smart standards in regulations, with clear limits on added sugars and prioritizing nutrient-dense, tooth-friendly foods. Integration of oral health promotion, including age-appropriate education, would also be beneficial.

Finally, oral health indicators, such as dental pain-related absenteeism and available screening data, should be included in the program's performance measurement framework.

Moving to divisions 34 and 36, Canada is already facing a significant maldistribution of dental hygienists, with persistent vacancy rates in several regions of the country. Training capacity has not kept pace with demand, and dental hygiene programs rely heavily on international student enrolment because of the high cost of clinical education infrastructure. As a result, caps on international enrolment pose immediate and serious challenges to program sustainability and to the future supply of dental hygienists. This pressure is compounded by the proposed changes in budget 2025.

In 2025, approximately 63% of dental hygiene graduates came from private, for-profit educational institutions. Limiting access to the Canada student grant for full-time students to public and not-for-profit institutions will therefore have a substantial impact on students pursuing careers in dental hygiene. As the committee examines these amendments, it will be important to consider how they may affect program accessibility, workforce supply and the broader oral health system.

In this context, CDHA is grateful that the government has included dental hygienists in the recent expansion of the student loan forgiveness program. This is a meaningful step for our profession and for the communities we serve. Loan forgiveness is not simply a financial support measure; it's a strategic workforce tool. It will help Canada attract and retain dental hygienists in rural, remote, northern and other underserved communities where preventable dental disease is most prevalent and access to care is most limited.

Now that the program is moving forward, CDHA urges the committee to ensure alignment with federal oral health initiatives, including the CDCP and community-based preventive programs, so that loan forgiveness strengthens service capacity where it's needed most. This is the right program at the right moment. With strong implementation, student loan forgiveness will not only ease financial pressures on new graduates but also help Canada build a more resilient, equitable and community-oriented oral health workforce.

In closing, thank you for the opportunity to appear on behalf of CDHA. I welcome your questions on any aspect of the budget implementation measures and their connection to the dental hygiene profession, the oral health workforce, or Canadians' access to preventive oral health services.

Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Bobby Morrissey]

Thank you, Ms. Love.

We'll now move to Mr. Sangster for five minutes or less.

[Michael Sangster, Chief Executive Officer, National Association of Career Colleges]

Mr. Chair and members of the committee, thank you for the opportunity to appear today.

My name is Michael Sangster, and I am the CEO of the National Association of Career Colleges. I represent over 500 regulated career colleges in every province in Canada. We train more than 200,000 learners annually in job-ready programs aligned to Canada's labour market needs.

Canada is operating in a period of significant economic pressure, trade uncertainty and fiscal restraint. The government is faced with major national challenges in housing, infrastructure, trade, energy and health care. Those realities are real, and they require thoughtful policy decisions that align education with economic outcomes.

I represent career colleges that work tirelessly with our regulators and student aid officials to improve accountability in student financial assistance and to improve student outcomes through regulation.

While we understand and support the government's desire to ensure quality outcomes, we believe that eliminating the Canada student grant for learners in programs longer than one year at career colleges moves Canada in the wrong direction.

Starting on August 1, 2026, our learners will no longer have access to these grants. This change does not reduce the cost of education. It transfers financial risk and hardship to regulated career college students, many of whom are working adults, career changers, and parents already managing employment, family responsibilities and the rising cost of living.

That is why I am here today—to represent our members, but more importantly the students who rely on us, and the employers and communities that we partner with to create our workforce.

Let me reframe the conversation as to why a student chooses a regulated career college. They do so because their program of choice can start next week, the classes fit their lifestyle, the practical training gets them a job, and small class sizes help them succeed. Students choose a regulated career college because it meets their needs. Shouldn't government policy do the same for a single mother, a newcomer to Canada or a laid-off auto worker?

Employers choose career colleges because they train the workforce they need. They get employees with real skills to do the job on day one. These grants are not a luxury. For many learners, these grants are part of the opportunity that helps them get an education and a job with dignity. For the auto worker looking for a fresh start, they create an opportunity to become a cybersecurity professional. These grants turn new Canadians into nurses, dental assistants and early childhood educators. These grants support single mothers to train in a third party accredited program that gives them and their children a better future.

Our colleges are helping the government deliver on programs like the Canada-wide early learning and child care program, the Canadian dental care plan and the pharmacare program, to name a few.

The results are clear—60% of career college graduates report being hired within three months of graduation, and more than 80% of employed graduates are working in jobs related to their training. Regulated career colleges are not a threat to Canada's public post-secondary institutions; rather, they complement the system already struggling to keep up with the demand of training and re-skilling workers to meet the moment we are in.

We train a different cohort of students, and they are being left out of this conversation. Student financial assistance should expand choice and opportunity, not restrict it based on institution type. Provinces regulate quality. Third party accreditors ensure that standards are being met. We should let students choose the institutions that meet their needs, their schedules, their locations and their learning modalities.

Today, we are asking the committee to make a recommendation to the government to reverse the decision announced in budget 2025. We must restore grant eligibility for regulated career college learners and pursue targeted reforms that strengthen integrity without cutting off access. We have been and continue to be prepared to offer other solutions that we believe are equal and fair.

If Canada wants workforce resilience, we must protect flexibility, multiple pathways and affordability in training. Choice matters, and when learners succeed, Canada succeeds.

Thank you for your service to your constituents, and we look forward to your questions.

[The Chair, Liberal, Bobby Morrissey]

Thank you, Mr. Sangster.

We'll now move to the first round of questions, which is six minutes each.

We'll begin with Mr. Genuis for six minutes.

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

Thank you, Chair.

Thank you to both of the witnesses for the important work that you do and for reinforcing the call that Conservatives have been making to reverse the proposed discrimination against students based on the kind of institution they're studying at.

It certainly doesn't make sense to me at a time when we're dealing with skill mismatches as part of the challenges contributing to youth unemployment that we would rule out grants to anyone studying at a career college at the same time as offering those grants to anyone studying in any program at a university.

Making distinctions that have nothing to do with labour market needs and are instead focused on institution type, I think, is a big mistake. It goes in the wrong direction. We need to be giving esteem to all careers and encouraging young people to look at the labour market and to consider careers that are in accordance with the needs of the labour market, rather than making decisions based on the esteem of the type of institution. I think that's what I hear you saying, and I thank you for raising these points.

Ms. Love, I want to start with you. In the context of the youth unemployment crisis we're talking about, there have been instances of skill and training mismatches. What I hear you saying is that dental hygiene is a career where there is demand, especially in remote areas. For young people thinking about careers that are going to lead to employment, yours is one area they should be looking at because of the demand in the market. Is that correct?

[Ondina Love]

Absolutely.

There are currently 41 educational programs in Canada for dental hygiene. We have nine private programs and 32 public programs. Ten are unaccredited. Nine of the programs are in Quebec, and one is in Saskatchewan. That one is seeking accreditation, but it's a brand new program, so 63% of those writing the NDHCE, which is the exam to become a dental hygienist, graduate from a private school.

As I mentioned in my remarks, the caps on the international students in public programs have really impacted their financial viability. One dental assisting program in B.C. has already closed, and we're worried about the future of the public dental hygiene programs in Canada. Also, cutting grants for private schools could impact the enrolment of private institutions as well.

With the CDCP, the demand has never been higher for dental hygienists.

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

Just to jump in, you're saying that the situation now is that there is demand for dental hygienists.

[Ondina Love]

Absolutely.

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

It sounds like you're describing a situation in the future where things could get worse. Public programs are under pressure. They're losing spots, potentially closing. Already, almost two-thirds of students are coming through private programs. If there are closures on the public side, that 63% is going to go up further, which means that whatever people might think ideologically about the difference between public and private, the reality is that in order to meet the demand for dental hygienists, those private programs are going to be extremely important. The changes proposed around grants are going to make it very difficult for middle- and low-income students to opt for that, and they might choose another career path instead that may respond less to the demand in the market.

[Ondina Love]

Absolutely, you're correct, because the Canadian dental care plan is a fantastic program. The demand is very high. Canadians appreciate it. They're seeing care. We have recent survey results, which we're releasing in a few weeks, that show that demand is higher than ever, and people are actually receiving care.

Dental hygienists can practise in rural or remote communities. They have mobile practices. Forty per cent of our independent hygienists go to practice with a van or a retrofitted ambulance to provide care in those communities where there isn't care. Any cuts to their educational opportunities would have an impact on the future supply of oral health care delivery for Canadians.

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

Yes, thank you.

That's very important, and I think it's quite concerning that in a time of existing shortages, government policy is exacerbating those shortages for the future in a number of ways.

Mr. Sangster, you talked about the problem with the budget provision. I want to also ask you about the framing of the budget provision, because the section that proposes cutting these grants identifies this as being about “integrity issues”. When you say that we're trying to address integrity issues but then propose a policy that sweeps in all career colleges and all private for-profit institutions, I think it's important to ask you to respond to that kind of critical and borderline slanderous framing of the whole universe of career colleges that exist in this country.

[Michael Sangster]

It is a unique situation that we often face, where misconceptions about our sector are carried into some of these other broader conversations. We saw it in the international student crisis a couple of years ago, where we actually had only 4.4% of the international students. If you read a newspaper article in the first few weeks, you would have sworn we were the entire problem.

I'd like to go back to the dental hygienist programs and the nine colleges that are teaching students to graduate into those professions. That is at a regulated career college that has been approved by the province that regulates them. The program approval often has a requirement that they prove there's a job opportunity for those graduates before they can start the program. They've gone through third party accreditation before they can even train those students.

Using a broad brush about our sector.... It's very challenging for us. We push back when we see those kinds of statements. We're very supportive of the other levels of post-secondary education and the challenges they're facing now, but to make these changes in the way they are being made now without equating it back to student choice and allowing the student to choose the institution that fits their need...we're troubled by that.

[The Chair, Liberal, Bobby Morrissey]

Thank you, Mr. Genuis.

Ms. Desrochers, you have the floor for six minutes.

[Caroline Desrochers, Liberal, Trois-Rivières, QC]

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.

I would like to thank the witnesses for coming here this morning to talk to us about the measures included in budget 2025. It includes a lot of measures to help Canadians.

Ms. Love, you talked about the measures in the Canadian dental care plan and the national school food program. I'll come back to that later.

So far, more than six million Canadians have registered for the plan. More than 3.7 million Canadians, including almost 200,000 Canadians in Alberta, 1.7 million Canadians in Quebec and tens of thousands of Canadians in my riding of Trois-Rivières have signed up and received services. This program is very much appreciated by people; I hear it on the ground. People are emotional when they talk to me about it, and they almost have tears in their eyes. They tell me that they haven't seen a dentist in years, but now they can go and get their teeth fixed, can smile again and feel good. Can you tell me a bit about how dentists are handling the arrival of these new patients?

We're talking about 3.7 million patients who wouldn't necessarily have gone to the dentist before being enrolled in the plan. Could you talk about the plan's impact on people's lives?

[Ondina Love]

It is an incredible program that the government is funding. We've heard many stories—the same as you. I've had a dental hygienist who treated an 86-year-old man who had never received dental care in his life. She said it was the highlight of her career. He's coming back, and he's getting oral health care. They're receiving care in long-term care homes where they couldn't chew, eat or swallow. Now they're receiving care. We have dental hygienists who have mobile practices that go into long-term care. Before, they could provide care only for those who could afford it. Now, because of the CDCP, many can have that. It means their quality of life improves significantly. There are so many cases.

We just did some public opinion polling regarding the CDCP. Nearly 73% of CDCP users say that the program has helped them access dental services they previously could not access. I just got these results yesterday. We're launching them in a few weeks. A lot of it is the cost. Ninety-two per cent say the program has at least somewhat improved their access to dental care. We're hearing very positive things about the program.

Also, we want to prevent disease. Dental caries is the number one disease in the world, and it's largely preventable. Through this program, we can prevent disease. Preventing disease has economic impacts. There are reduced emergency room visits, which cost the health care system. There is reduced absenteeism for children at school and reduced absenteeism for our workforce, because they have good oral health care and they're not missing work because of dental pain.

The programs are coming on board. There are 27,000 oral health providers enrolled in the program and providing care. We do need the oral health workforce. We do need a strong workforce—including dentists, dental hygienists and the whole dental care team, including assistants—to be trained to deliver that care.

[Caroline Desrochers, Liberal, Trois-Rivières, QC]

Thank you very much for that.

Indeed, I think prevention is extremely important.

You mentioned the national school food program, which is another tool. However, like the Canadian dental care plan, it is being blocked by my opposition colleagues. Those programs are in budget 2025, which is stalled in committee right now. Until the budget is approved, these programs will not be able to move forward.

In fact, we moved a motion to study the national school food program. We want to make sure it's set up in the best possible way, but unfortunately, we haven't been able to get to the point of having this discussion in committee.

Could you talk a little bit about the link between children's oral health and better nutrition?

[Ondina Love]

Yes, the relationship between children's oral health and overall health is huge. As I said, dental caries is one of the most preventable diseases in the world, yet the incidence of caries, especially in children, is the norm. Everyone says their child has a cavity. It's becoming the norm, and it shouldn't be the norm, because it's a disease. That's why it's important to have nutrition in the schools and healthy choices for children. Sometimes it's the only meal they get in a day. It is an incredible program.

You might think, “Why wouldn't we just give money to the provinces to offer the program?” Look at the Canadian dental care plan. This is a federal program delivered through private delivery. It's a unique and very successful program. There is a leadership role that the federal government can play in delivering a national school food program. It's interesting: You could give the money, with strings attached, to the provinces, but then is there any guarantee the program will be delivered in each of the jurisdictions in Canada? I think a federal program would provide leadership, and not just through nutrition.

I'll share a personal story. My father's 91, and he still volunteers at the school to do the breakfast program for the kids every Friday. It's a social thing for seniors as well, to get out in their communities and give back. It's important. When you're designing a program, we'd be happy to be involved to ensure that it's a tooth-friendly program and is going to be nutritious for the oral health of children and Canadians.

[Caroline Desrochers, Liberal, Trois-Rivières, QC]

Thank you very much for your testimony, Ms. Love.

[The Chair, Liberal, Bobby Morrissey]

Ms. Larouche, you have the floor for six minutes.

[Andréanne Larouche, Bloc, Shefford, QC]

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.

Mr. Sangster and Ms. Love, thank you very much for being here this morning.

We are very attentive to people's oral health and to the fact that young people need to have full bellies when they go to school.

Before I ask my questions, I would like to set the record straight, so that everyone understands.

We understand the importance of the school food program. My colleague was talking about a motion that was tabled in committee at the last minute, even though it did not comply with the committee's rules, and we didn't have the opportunity to study it. We're not against school food programs, contrary to what my colleague opposite said. We just wanted the motion to be tabled within the prescribed time frame. I may come back to the school food program a little later, but for now, I'll come back to the dental care program.

We understand the importance of this program. Obviously, we already had a dental care program in Quebec. Quebec's case is a bit unique compared to the rest of Canada. In fact, that's why the National Assembly of Quebec had asked that the funds be transferred to the province to enhance what it already had. Instead, the program was outsourced to a private company.

I don't know if that's why—you might be able to answer this—but late last year, we received an open letter from someone living in Sept‑Îles who wanted to bring to our attention a paradoxical situation experienced by many people in remote regions. This person said that, even when you have full coverage for dental care, it is still extremely difficult, sometimes impossible, to get that care within a reasonable period of time. She said that in Sept‑Îles, where she lives, the supply of dental services was already limited and that the government's dental care access program, although essential to reducing financial barriers, wasn't adapted to the reality of isolated communities. She also said that there were few participating clinics, that they were overwhelmed with demand or located several hours away, making it difficult to access dental care. She added that she's insured, that she has no extra costs to pay, but that she can almost never get an appointment, that wait times sometimes extend over several years, even for basic care, and that travel is long, costly and often incompatible with work, health or family responsibilities. Finally, she said that her teeth were deteriorating unnecessarily because she can't get regular follow-up.

Ms. Love, my question is about the program that was set up in Quebec, where we already had our own. What do you say to that person about the fact that perhaps we should have thought of the availability of services upstream in order to properly implement this dental care program? I'm talking about labour, among other things.

[Ondina Love]

Thank you for the question. You've raised a real issue.

We recognize that there is a maldistribution of oral health professionals across the country. We were looking to have an oral health workforce study to ensure there are enough oral health professionals to provide care.

In Quebec, it's fairly recent that independent dental hygienists can practise and have their own business, and that's only in the last few years. A lot of them are doing mobile practices and providing care in those rural or remote regions.

I also congratulate the government on expanding the current student loan forgiveness program to include dental hygienists. Applications can start to be received on March 26 of this year. It's an excellent opportunity to incent hygienists to work and commit in those rural and remote communities where there is not access to care. That's what we're trying to solve, that access to care issue. We need to have an adequate supply of oral health professionals.

In terms of the programs in this budget, regarding the cancellation of grants for private colleges, that may reduce the number of dental hygienists in the system. That would have impact in terms of access to care in all regions of the country. I think that we still have work to do in terms of this, but we're making steps.

The student loan forgiveness should and, hopefully, will help in sending people to work and live in those remote communities and provide oral health care, which is so desperately needed. Dentists are included in that loan forgiveness program as well.

[Andréanne Larouche, Bloc, Shefford, QC]

You talk a lot about the financial impact of these student loans, which discourages students from continuing their studies. This exacerbates labour problems, since there are ultimately fewer workers to provide these services.

Are you seeing students abandoning their studies altogether? What could be offered to help them financially? Do you have any other measures to recommend?

[Ondina Love]

I'm sorry, but I missed the last of the translation. It cut out.

Other measures to propose to assist dental hygienists include the student loan forgiveness program. There is a new program that just opened in Quebec as well, so currently there are 10 programs in Quebec, nine in French and one in English. The number of educational programs in Quebec exceeds those of other provinces, except for Ontario, which has the majority of the programs.

Also, the cuts to the grants program could have an impact. For financial incentives, the student loan forgiveness program and eligibility for grants from the federal government should improve the ability of students to afford to enter dental hygiene.

[Andréanne Larouche, Bloc, Shefford, QC]

Based on your observations, which provinces are currently facing the biggest challenges in terms of access to dental care, given the shortage here in Canada?

Did you hear the interpretation?