Mr. Chair, before COVID-19, current and future post-secondary students across this country were facing annual tuition fees of almost $65,000 per year on average. In 2016, students collectively owed $36 billion, $18 billion of which is owed to the federal government.
Now our students have an inability to raise those funds through work, which is threatened because of this pandemic. While it becomes increasingly critical for workers to hold a post-secondary degree, students today are being made to foot more of the bill for their education, more than any students in history.
Our students are our future. We should be making their education more affordable and more accessible. Will the government work with the provinces to eliminate post-secondary tuition fees through a dedicated post-secondary transfer that meets the needs of our public education institutions?