Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to join in the discussion and debate because for too long in Canada we have been living in the context in which the future seems to be a dead end for our young people and for people who want to pursue post-secondary studies.
Many young people are wondering what awaits them when they get out of school, college or even university. They are wondering whether they will be able to find a job that corresponds to their skills. They are wondering if there is a place for them in the labour market.
We must do much more than wring our hands about the often drastic situation of our young people while remaining indifferent to their plight. We can get into debates about issues around centralization. We could make passionate arguments about indebtedness but it is important to note that the program proposed today is a model of administrative delegation with the federal government providing for the financing of student loans through private sector lenders and provinces undertaking certain responsibilities in respect of assessing student needs and awarding aid under the program.
We must give back to our country and to its citizens the confidence and optimism that are needed to create a strong, dynamic economy which is so necessary in the context of market globalization.
In light of this need, the government recently launched, and the minister again spoke of it today, on the youth employment and learning strategy in order to give our young people in particular and Canadians in general the means and the opportunities of taking on this new economic challenge.
Under the proposed reforms provinces are expected to play a central role in the administration of the programs. In fact the proposals to reform the program have been developed through close consultation with provinces and interest groups over the past two years. Many of the changes reflect criteria in place under provincial student assistance programs. I am referring to measures which emphasize results in learning as well initiatives to ease student indebtedness on completion of their studies.
Far from limiting provincial flexibility, the bill continues to provide for jurisdictions choosing to offer their own student assistance programs to opt out of the federal scheme and receive appropriate compensation. The formula for compensation has been expanded to include the enhancements offered under the federal program. In this way students in opted out jurisdictions will also benefit from the changes being recommended by the government.
What are those changes? The student bill amends the Canada Student Loans Act in order to ensure that it truly meets the objectives for which it was designed 30 years ago to enable our young people to pursue their education in accordances with their talents, their interest and ambitions.
Women pursuing post-secondary education face great challenges. The United Nations has identified unequal access to education as one of the impediments to women's full participation in society. Women still face many of the challenges confronted by women in the fifties and in the sixties. They face segregation by occupation, low wages, insufficient child care and a heavy burden of family responsibilities which can impede access to education.
These facts influence the ability of women to obtain teaching jobs at universities and colleges and to advance through the professorate. At the college level 15,000 full time teachers are men, compared with 10,000 women. At the university level there are 30,000 men who are full time faculty and only 8,000 women. Furthermore, women are concentrated at the lower ranks of full time university faculty. They account for less than 8 per cent of full professors, 20 per cent of associate professors and 33 per cent of assistant professors. Because women at all levels below full professor are less likely than their male counterparts to have earned a doctorate, their career prospects are significantly hindered.
Despite rapid improvements in the participation of women at the undergraduate level, we know they are still greatly under represented in areas such as engineering, applied sciences, mathematics and the physical sciences.
Right now about one-third of doctoral students are women. Female doctoral students receiving Canada student loans tend to have greater assessed needs and higher debt loads than their male counterparts, which makes studying more difficult for them and repaying their loans more onerous.
The proposed amendments are designed to eliminate this barrier which is faced by women who are pursuing post-secondary studies or who have decided to return to college or university. Female doctoral students may be eligible to access up to $3,000 in any given year for up to three years of study to help them meet the costs associated with studies at the doctoral level.
As I previously mentioned, the amount of loans and allocations has not changed in 10 years. Currently the maximum amount of loans provided to students under the program is $3,600 a year. The average cost of one year of studies, however, is estimated at $9,500 for a single student enrolled in university who does not live with his or her parents.
Furthermore, students who have one or more dependents or who are the head of a single parent family and persons with disabilities have additional financial difficulties for which no specific measures are provided under the program. The program in its current form is not always equitable. There is no guarantee that students in comparable circumstances will receive fair, uniform treatment from one province to the next. In addition, the amounts provided are determined by provincial authorities without taking into account the province or region in which the educational institution attended by the applicant is located.
Under the new program the maximum annual loan limit will increase to $5,600 per school year for full time students, and $4,000 for part time students. This will ensure that those persons with the greatest need can count on reasonable financial assistance while they complete their studies. I would point out that these amounts represent an increase of almost 60 per cent.
In addition, special opportunity grants which will be awarded to students with the greatest financial need will help re-establish equality of opportunity for higher education.
Expanding eligibility for the interest relief plan to low income persons with low wage or part time jobs will grant them relief they had previously been denied.
This will enable us to provide support to those students who are truly determined to succeed, while at the same time making good use of taxpayers' money. With the new legislation we will be able to establish new funding terms so that all eligible students will have access to loans, to develop repayment formulas that take incomes into account, and to benefit taxpayers by reducing the costs of the program.
For a system of financial assistance to be fair and equitable for all Canadians from coast to coast it must be consistent while obviously reflecting the particular economic conditions of each region.
The federal government therefore intends to work more closely with the provinces with a view to standardizing the operation of the program and to exploring the potential for greater harmonization of federal and provincial student assistance programs.
This bill respects provincial jurisdiction over education. These reforms are about creating opportunities and providing hope to Canadians who might not otherwise pursue post-secondary learning without financial assistance.
The bill is intended to provide the necessary enabling authority so that the government's announced reforms to the program can proceed.
Contrary to what we have heard in the House, the government has been very clear about its intention to overhaul the Canada student loans program. Specifically, our intention was announced to increase the loan limits for full time and part time students. The government will shortly be providing an overview of the regulations to the committee examining the bill in specific ways.
These regulations will be subject to the normal regulatory approval process. They will be prepublished for the purpose of pursuing the widest possible consultation on their content. Prior to finalizing those regulations they will be reviewed in light of those comments for consideration and approval by the governor in council.
The Government of Canada has long provided funding for post-secondary education. In 1993-94, $15.6 billion was spent on post-secondary education. The total federal support reached $8 billion, representing over 50 per cent of total support.
Federal EPF transfers to Quebec for post-secondary education are expected to reach $1.5 billion in 1994 and 1995, representing an increase of over $12 million over last year.
It is in this same spirit of federal-provincial co-operation and in order to provide the greatest possible opportunity that I join in this debate and I support the minister responsible.
We have before us an innovative project aimed at giving the people of Canada, both young and old, the chance to reach their objectives in the area of education, training and equal opportunities for doing so.
Therefore we must not hesitate to take bold steps to restore the faith of our fellow citizens in the future. We must let them know that we wish to strengthen our economy and make Canada a strong and competitive country on the international scene. This is a primary objective of the youth employment and learning strategy.
We have here a complete initiative, a concrete initiative that is part of a national strategy whose value I am convinced is recognized by all Canadians. I am also convinced that all of my fellow members of Parliament are becoming increasingly aware of the merits and the necessity of this initiative after today's discussions. I therefore call on every member to demonstrate and give their support to this bill.