Thank you for having me here today to speak about the bill.
The recent federal budget contains several positive measures for students, but there is still much to be done. If scholarships and bursaries are made tax exempt, then students will be able to use their awards as intended, to cover the growing costs of post-secondary education. This is a particularly significant benefit for graduate students who receive research funding.
One concern we often hear from students regarding student financial assistance is that their parents' income is unfairly assessed. By lowering the amount of expected parental contribution, the government will ensure that thousands of students who previously could not get financial aid will now qualify.
Lifelong learning is important for all Canadians. This budget makes important steps towards providing assistance and opportunities for those who choose apprenticeship training.
There are some problems with this budget, however. While the government is well intentioned in acknowledging the costs of textbooks and supplies, a tax credit is not the way to go. Tax credits are an ineffective method of assisting students. Yet 40% of our student aid budget is already spent in this way. The best way to improve access is through targeted grants, such as the proposed apprenticeship incentive grant.
Students are tremendously disappointed that this budget does not echo the previous commitment to extend the Canada access grant. This denies thousands of students from low-income families of much needed assistance.
The creation of a PSE infrastructure trust, which has already been talked about a lot today, is important for colleges and universities. We're concerned that this does not follow the spirit of Bill C-48, the intention of which was to improve access.
Our colleges and universities need a new funding arrangement. The government campaigned on a promise of a dedicated education and training transfer. We look forward to further development on that and hopefully seeing that in a future budget.
Finally, what our post-secondary education system needs most is leadership. The council of the federation has been working to make this a priority, and it's time for the federal government to join a national dialogue on higher education. The Prime Minister should call a first ministers conference on the matter and lead the way towards a truly pan-Canadian vision for post-secondary education.