Thank you, Mr. Chair.
My first amendment in this section is similar to the next one. It follows up on testimony we have heard about the proposal for loans only to be subject to interest six months after students have completed their studies.
We have heard that interest on student loans generates $700 million per year for the country’s coffers. That is far beyond the cost of the program. Simply put, the government is getting rich at the expense of students. That seems to me to be what we can deduce from this.
Students have taken on debt in order to be able to finish their studies. The cost of the studies is too high, so they have to go into debt in order to be able to finish them. The Government of Canada is getting rich at their expense. It would perhaps be to their advantage to put that money somewhere else. Those $700 million could help them to buy a house, for example, to look after their needs, to have children, or to improve their professional skills. In our opinion, those $700 million should stay in the pockets of the former students.
We are proposing that student loans be interest-free for borrowers. That is our proposal. Why limit the interest exemption to six months when it could apply to the entire loan in the future?
That is my proposal, Mr. Chair. I hope that you will find it to be in order and that you will accept it.