Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to support Motion No. 478 sponsored by my colleague, the hon. member for Fundy--Royal. I was pleased today to note when I appeared with him at a press conference that the motion also has the support of the two largest student groups in the country. We are joined today by Erin Stevenson and Ian Boyko who are chairs respectively of the Canadian Alliance of Student Associations and the Canadian Federation of Students.
This debate reflects different visions of the future of the country. It raises directly the question, will the federal government take a direct and active role within its jurisdiction in making Canada the best educated country in the world, or will it continue to ignore the crushing burden of student debt which is driving young Canadians not only out of school but also out of our country?
The Liberal government talks piously about the new knowledge economy. Students cannot pay bills with talk. They cannot contribute fully to the knowledge economy with the current cost of education. Access to post-secondary education is becoming one of the crucial and defining issues of modern Canada.
Of course, the solution lies mostly with the provinces, despite the influence the private sector might have. However, the federal government must play a key role and show some leadership, given its unquestionable jurisdiction over tax matters, by setting an example that would urge the other stakeholders to make access to high quality education a national priority in Canada.
The motion would introduce a tax credit based on the repayment of Canada student loan principal to a maximum of 10% of the principal per year for the first 10 years after graduation with a proviso, the proviso being that the individual remains in Canada. This simple initiative helps Canadian students pay down their debt and helps them stay in their country. It addresses student debt and brain drain at one and the same time. It is an area of education where the federal government has both the power to act and, I would argue, the duty to act.
This initiative would allow graduate students to pay down their debt more quickly if they remain in Canada as productive taxpaying citizens. The Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance says that this proposed tax credit is too small to sway a student's career choice. That is not what students in my constituency or those anywhere across the country tell me. That is a bureaucrat's response. It is not the view that we heard in the round table on post-secondary education which my party sponsored last summer nor in our meetings with students across the country.
The government is simply wrong for three reasons. First, any student will say that a tax credit is better than no help at all, which is the Liberal government's response to student debt. Second, this proposal allows a student who stays in Canada to pay off all the principal of his or her Canada student loan. That is a significant help which will encourage young Canadians who are just starting their careers to make their choice to stay in Canada.
Finally, the Liberal government is shortsighted and wrong in its do nothing attitude toward student debt. While the Liberal government is piling up surpluses to look good today, it is forcing the students who will make Canada strong tomorrow to either forgo their studies or move to other countries.
Students today average a debt load of over $25,000 upon graduation or completion of university. It is estimated that this year alone 350,000 Canadian students will rely on federal loans worth $1.6 billion to finance their education. Post-secondary education costs have skyrocketed, largely due to the unilateral Liberal cuts to transfer payments which help provinces pay for education.
Since 1993 the Liberal government has cut $5.3 billion from post-secondary education funding in Canada. One direct result of those federal cuts is that tuition in Canada has increased over 125% in the decade 1990-2000. At the current rate, in 2008 tuition fees will be 226% higher than they were in 1990. That contributes directly to the swelling debt loads of Canadian students.
Despite incentives for parents to save for their children's post-secondary education, many do not or simply cannot. Almost 80% of Canadian parents with household incomes of less than $30,000 want their children to obtain a university education but only 18.7% are saving for post-secondary education.
My colleague, the hon. member for Fundy--Royal, pointed out that a greater proportion of family after tax income is needed by low income households to cover the cost of tuition and fees. He stated “The lowest quintile of families would have had to set aside 14% of their income in 1990 to pay the cost of university tuition. In 1998-99 that rate increased to 23%.”
We are not only talking about the lives of students and their families, but also about the role of Canada as a world leader.
Human capital is becoming our most precious resource. The new economy is based on knowledge; it moves as fast as a lightning bolt. Training and human capabilities generate wealth. Education is the key to the future.
The government's own innovation strategy predicts that by 2004 more than 70% of all new jobs created in Canada will require some form of post-secondary education and 25% of new jobs will require a university degree. That is only two years away.
It will not happen unless we help students meet their impossible debt loads. This motion is a first step but there is much more to do.
Canada must become a source of sustained excellence through training and education. I fully recognize that education is a provincial area of jurisdiction, but we also need to provide each and every Canadian with the best education possible. Before going any further, the federal government should reaffirm its commitment to respect provincial jurisdiction over this area.
If the federal government wants new scholarship programs, it should work them out co-operatively rather than end-running the provinces with projects like the millennium project that simply broke the trust that is essential to a federation. If Ottawa is to use its spending power, it should do that co-operatively, not unilaterally.
The federal government can provide the leadership. It should co-ordinate either through the Council of Ministers of Education Canada or through first ministers conferences. There is no reason that the first ministers of the country could not be called together regularly to ensure that we have the highest education standards in the world. We could co-ordinate initiatives designed to ensure Canadian competitiveness and Canadian excellence.
The issues of increasing tuition costs, of student debt, of crumbling infrastructure of universities, of access to post-secondary education, of the question of best practices should all be part of the discussion.
Instead of showing a total lack of flexibility, the federal government should help the provinces to build an education system worthy of the 21st century. It should urge the provinces to take part in a national debate on these major issues, not so that it can take all the credit, but because it is the best thing to do.
The time to act is now. The motion addresses one aspect of accessibility of post-secondary education, one way to keep the best and the brightest here in Canada. It is a first step in dealing with Canada's competitiveness.
It allows our students to pay down their education debts more quickly. It is an initiative that could be put in place very quickly by the federal government and by the federal government acting alone. It would address the growing concern of Canadians that post-secondary education must be made more affordable.
The motion deserves the support of members from all corners of the House. It serves the best interests of the Canadian future. I hope it will be adopted.