Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to take part in this debate because I am one of those people who believe that there is a role for a Government of Canada that can take a view of this country from coast to coast to coast of where this country is and the goals that we can reach.
When I hear claims of fiscal imbalance I must ask that we look at the realities of life in Canada. We must look at how Canada is dealing with the issues of importance to its prosperity and to the inclusion of all citizens, now and in the future. With that in mind I want to comment on the Government of Canada's role in post-secondary education.
Why does post-secondary education matter so much in terms of public policy? The work that takes place in our universities and colleges in all its diversity is essential to Canada's innovation strategy. This is true in terms of the research and development that any advanced country needs.
Indeed the Government of Canada has a long tradition of supporting research that is such an important part of the work of our post-secondary system. During the 2000-01 fiscal year the overall federal investment in research was valued at more than $4.5 billion if we include both the value of spending and tax measures to support this research. Currently in cabinet committee we are looking at how that money is distributed. I am constantly making the point to witnesses that we would like more of that money spent in the north on northern research, and I continue to make that point.
However, our colleges and universities are also important in providing skills and learning to individual Canadians. That is as true for individuals doing the classroom work they need for an apprenticeship in a skill trade as it is for someone doing doctoral work in computer science.
Let us be clear that Canada needs both sets of skills. We need a post-secondary system with a capacity to help Canadians gain that full range of skills. Those skills do not just matter to individuals; they matter to Canada too. The knowledge-based economy of our era, and the skills and knowledge of individuals lead to innovation and ensures Canada's ongoing economic competitiveness.
The Government of Canada's commitment to skills and learning is about ensuring that individual Canadians can drive economic development and can fully participate in it and benefit from it. It is essential that our post-secondary system have the resources to do its important work. The Government of Canada helps to provide those resources through many vehicles with the full recognition that education is a provincial and territorial responsibility.
The most important means that our government invests in post-secondary education is through the Canada Health and Social Transfer, the CHST. It is worth reminding the House that budget 2000 provided a $2.5 billion increase in the CHST. That marked the fourth consecutive federal enhancement to the transfer. Does that money matter? Of course it does. During this fiscal year alone the value of the CHST to the provinces and territories would reach an all time high of $34 billion with a significant portion of that money going into our colleges and universities.
However, federal support is about more than investment in the system. It is about direct investment in people. In February 2002 the Government of Canada announced its innovation strategy. Investments in people, skills, and learning for Canada would be a centrepiece of that innovation strategy.
There is a clear and compelling case for action. For example, by 2004 70% of new jobs would require some form of post-secondary education. Most of those new jobs would require a university degree, a college diploma or an apprenticeship certification for a skilled trade. Fully a quarter of all new jobs created by 2004 would require a university degree. Fortunately, while there is much to be done, we have a strong base on which to act.
Of all the countries in the world Canada has the highest proportion of people with post-secondary education in its working age population. This did not just happen. It was the result of years of public policy choices that have the strong support of Canadians.
Canadians recognize that our success as a nation has come not only from strong growth but also from an abiding commitment to strong values and assistance on the equitable sharing of the benefits of economic growth.
For years we have chosen to expand access to post-secondary education. The Government of Canada has developed a range of programs and services that help students reach their education goals. Under the LIberal government those programs and services have expanded both in number and in reach.
In every budget since 1997 the Government of Canada has made important investments in post-secondary education. These include the Canada millennium scholarship bursaries which pays out $285 million a year in non-repayable scholarships to close to 95,000 students across Canada. The enhanced Canada study grants go to 65,000 students and are worth close to $85 million in non-repayable support. Enhanced interest relief worth over $110 million a year benefits 125,000 students who are in the process of repaying their student loans.
The best known federal program supporting access to post-secondary education is the Canada student loans program. For the 2000-01 fiscal year alone the Canada student loans program helped about 350,000 students with loans that were worth $1.6 billion.
In the context of this debate it is particularly important to point out that the Government of Canada has built this program in a way that reflects our commitment to flexible federalism with the focus on results. One example of that is the fact that students from Quebec, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut do not take part in the CSLP. Instead, the program has been structured so that those governments get funding from the Government of Canada for their own equivalent student loans programs.
Of course the government has introduced other improvements that are designed to enhance access to post-secondary education, especially for students of low and middle income families and for students facing other barriers such as those with disabilities. The Canadian millennium scholarships are a good example of this. In 2000-01 some 95,000 Canadian students with financial need received Canadian millennium scholarships averaging $3,000 per student.
In the context of this debate, it is important to point out that the Canadian Millennium Scholarship Foundation has development agreements with the governments of all the provinces and territories on the delivery of scholarships to students.
Since 1995 the Government of Canada has offered non-repayable Canada study grants to students in specific kinds of situations, to high needs students, those with disabilities, part time students, to women in some doctoral programs and to students with dependants. In December 2001 the federal government announced $10 million to increase the Canada study grants for disabled students to help accommodate their expenses associated with post-secondary education.
The government is not just looking at today's college and university students. It is interested in paving the way for tomorrow as well. For that reason the government brought in the Canada education savings grant which provides a grant of up to $400 a year for children who are beneficiaries of a registered education savings plan.
To date over $1 billion in grants has been paid toward the future post-secondary education of 1.5 million of our youngest Canadians. Canadians are not too concerned about so-called imbalances between one government and another.