Post-Secondary Education: Conservative Government investing in Canada’s future

April 18, 2007

Along with the dozens of further tax cuts contained in Budget 2007, there are a number of initiatives which will help families ensure that their children have greater access to post-secondary education. This Conservative government clearly recognizes that access to post-secondary education and building a highly skilled workforce is essential for ensuring future opportunities for young Canadians as well as being critical to our country’s economic growth and prosperity.

Actually, both Budget 2006 and Budget 2007* focus on this goal, including providing $370 million in new investments over two years to foster excellence and accessibility in post-secondary education. It is important to note however, that our second federal budget provides about $2-billion more in post-secondary education and research expenditures.

Some of the new investments and improvements this new Conservative government has made over the past 13 months include:

• expanding eligibility for Canada Student Loans to more middle-income families by reducing the amount parents are expected to contribute;

• eliminating federal income tax on all income from scholarships, bursaries or fellowships;

• creating a new Textbook Tax Credit that will provide a tax credit of $65 per month for full-time post-secondary students and $20 a month for part-time students;

• a tax credit for those who use public transit;

• up to $1 billion in additional funding to provinces and territories to support investments to promote innovation and accessibility in post-secondary education;

• Increasing Canada Social Transfer payments for post-secondary education to $3.2 billion in 2008-09 (a 40 per cent increase);

• providing the greatest number of scholarships ever granted to graduate students through the Graduate Scholarships program; and

• helping Canadians save by making Registered Education Savings Plans (RESPs) more attractive by eliminating the $4000 limit on annual contributions, increasing the lifetime RESP contribution limit from $42,000 to $50,000 and increasing the maximum Canada Education Savings Grant annual amount from $400 to $500.

As Roger Martin and James Milway stated in the National Post on March 20th, Budget 2007 “strengthens registered education savings programs -- thus helping Canadians invest in their own skills. Post-secondary education is the most important investment Canadians can make in themselves and so these are positive initiatives.”

REPAYMENT AID
The Canada Student Loan Program promotes accessibility to post-secondary education by providing loans or grants to qualified students based on assessed financial need. However, once their education is complete, and they are trying to enter the workforce, many young Canadians initially find it difficult to begin repaying their students loans. Additional measures are available, including interest and repayment reductions, to help students who are experiencing debt management difficulties. The federal government also provides Canada Access Grants and Canada Study Grants to reduce the amount of borrowing for students from low-income families or other targeted groups. In cooperation with provinces and territories, this new Conservative government will continue to examine ways to assist borrowers in repayment.

BUDGET RESPONSE
There has been a great deal of positive response across the country to our improvements to education funding. From approval of our move to make saving for post-secondary education easier to committing more long-term and stable funding through the Canada Social Transfer, experts and analysts have indicated they support Budget 2007. We’ve also invested in university research and graduate students. Universities are pleased with [these] commitments, which will help Canada to take its university research efforts to the next level. These are just some of the ways in which our Prime Minister and this government are planning for the future of Canada and Canadians. We are paying down our debt, cutting taxes, and investing in the future of our country. We are committed to making Canada stronger, safer and better for generations to come.

(*Budget 2007 contains continued funding to help Canadian youth further their education and training. More information on the details can be found at www.fin.gc.ca.)

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For more information, please contact: Leon Benoit, MP
1-800-463-1194/ (780) 763-6130