Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
We would like to thank the members of the committee for having invited us to make our presentation today.
Our brief includes eight recommendations which can be found on page 9 and focus on three main priorities: first, reforming and increasing transfer payments for post-secondary education; second, reviewing tax spending on post-secondary education; third, ending discrimination against students.
Today I would like to focus on the issue of transfer payments for post-secondary education.
First, the QFUS is asking for the creation of a dedicated transfer for post-secondary education as currently exists for health. A dedicated transfer would have two main advantages: first, it would clearly define the federal contribution to post-secondary education—ensuring transparency—and second it would make federal funding for post-secondary education predictable, greatly simplifying the provinces' budgetary planning.
Second, we are calling for an unconditional transfer. Each province has unique needs in relation to post-secondary education. In Quebec, for example, the greatest need continues to be funding for the system as a whole. However, in Nova Scotia, where tuition fees are the highest in the country, the biggest problem is accessibility. That is why the Government of Nova Scotia has committed itself to reducing tuition fees at its universities and colleges to the national average by 2011.
Obviously, a national post-secondary education strategy can never succeed if it is based on rigid conditions. That is why the provinces must have complete flexibility in administering their post-secondary education system.
Third, we want the federal government to prioritize transfers as a way to fund post-secondary education. Along with cash transfers to the provincial government, the federal government also contributes to post-secondary education funding through tax spending that provides direct benefits to individuals. Federal tax spending includes income tax credits for tuition fees, tax credits for education savings, and the education savings grant.
Generally speaking, those programs are based on tuition fees. Provinces that opt for accessibility, as Quebec does, therefore receive less than their fair share of the tax spending.
Still, cash transfers remain the most equitable form of federal funding for post-secondary education. They also do less to interfere in areas under provincial jurisdiction and provide the provinces with the flexibility they need to respond to their own specific problems.
Finally, we ask that cash transfers for post-secondary education be considered a first step in resolving the fiscal imbalance. In view of the health agreement signed in 2004, the first priority in any resolution should be targeted at the provinces' second largest fiscal burden, post-secondary education.
The 1996 reductions in transfer payments are the most often cited cause of the present imbalance. It seems logical to conclude from this that restoring those cuts should be the first step towards resolving the fiscal imbalance. To restore funding to where it was before the cuts, an increase of $4.9 billion for post-secondary education must be provided by the federal government.
In addition, an increase in cash transfers for post-secondary education is certainly not controversial, and is rather the subject of a broad consensus among provincial governments. In a joint statement issued after the Summit on Post-secondary Education and Skills Training held by the Council of the Federation, the provincial premiers called for increased federal funding for post-secondary education. More specifically, they called for an increase of $4.9 billion in cash transfers.
That concludes my testimony today. I look forward to answering any question you may have in either official language. Thank you.