Mr. Speaker, I want to make a couple of comments with regard to post-secondary as well.
When I talk to students, I often talk about the cost of an education. My conclusion to them is usually the first thing I tell them, and that is that they cannot afford not to go to post-secondary. The spread in the compensation of a high school grad compared to a college or a university grad is about 19% for the rest of their lives.
When they talk about students coming out with $40,000 in debt, I understand some people do. However, I also know that 95% of students pay their loans off on time. I also know that most students are not even qualified to receive student loans because of their family incomes. I also know that if the children do not have taxable incomes, their parents get to claim education expenses and tuition to reduce their taxes. Are they making no contribution to this education? I also know the student is off for four months a year. Are they making no money whatsoever, even cutting lawns or whatever it is, to make a contribution?
I was there too. I used to run a computer at night to raise a few dollars for food. Sometimes we just have to put a little into it. It is not that there are absolutely no benefits on the gross amount of the expenses. The member should be straight with students and tell them that they cannot afford not to go to post-secondary.