If you'll allow me, the two issues that you mentioned, sort of coming to ground on this issue and the broader issue around DLIs, both speak to the need for co-operation. I think what we've identified through this process.... As you know, we've had phone calls, emails and messages back and forth about this particular issue, as I've had with members of different parties, and I find that when we take these ideas from different sources, we can identify what the real issues are.
I think it has led to a workable solution that's going to help protect people who deserve protection in this instance and that's going to hold accountable those who seek to abuse the system. I think the same is true with designated learning institutions. We need to do a better job, not only as a government but also as a society, of working across levels of government and of working with institutions to better monitor the system.
The reality is—at the risk of getting ahead of myself, given where we are from a policy perspective today—I've heard a lot of stories that really trouble me about designated learning institutions. The vast majority are good actors, make no mistake, but when I hear the stories of students who come to this country, who tell me they feel like they were sold a false bill of goods and who are enrolled in a program that may have 1,000 students but with room in the facility for a few dozen students, it suggests to me that there are international students being exploited in this country.
Look at the number of students who were attending brand new institutions that have popped up and who have inadequate mental health and housing supports. I hear stories about people who are being promised a pathway to permanent residency that does not exist for them. I hear promises being made to international students like, “You can come through the student program, but really, you know you just want to work in this country.” That is not what the program is about. We need to work very carefully with institutions so that people know what they are getting themselves into and that they are applying for the appropriate programs.
We need to work with provincial governments, which are responsible for identifying DLIs that have access to the program, to ensure that they're willing to hold accountable the institutions that are not treating students fairly but instead are seeking to profit off them as individuals, not caring whether they are exploited or set up for success. The vast majority of institutions are good players. We're working towards developing a trusted partner model with institutions that we know are good actors and that have a strong history of working with students and of respecting them.
The international student program is contributing in excess of $22 billion annually to this country. Forget for the moment that the economic and social benefits we derive are enormous. If students are making that contribution to us, I think we owe it to them to be honest about what they're getting themselves into, to not exploit them and to set them up for success. As it turns out, making that happen can be challenging, but it's an effort worth making.
