Media Advisory - Students available to comment on 2013 Federal Budget - KXNet - Bismarck/Minot/Williston/Dickinson

Media Advisory - Students available to comment on 2013 Federal Budget

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SOURCE Canadian Federation of Students

OTTAWA, March 20, 2013 /CNW/ - Students will be available to comment on the 2013 Federal Budget immediately following its release on Thursday, March 21. During pre-budget consultations, the Canadian Federation of Students recommended restoring federal funding for post-secondary education to 1992 levels, redirecting funding from education tax credits and savings schemes into upfront grants, and strengthening financial support for Aboriginal students.

THE FACTS:

• Tuition fees in Canada range from $7,180 (Ontario) and $2,649 (Newfoundland and Labrador) and have increased at five times the rate of inflation since the mid 1990s.
• National student debt has surpassed $15 billion and is expected to surpass $19 billion before 2015.
• More than 171,000 Canadians were unable to make any payments on their student loans in 2012.
• More than 20,000 First Nations students are currently on a waiting list to receive funding to pursue post-secondary education. Funding increases have been capped at 2 percent since 1996.

The Canadian Federation of Students is Canada's largest student organisation, uniting more than one-half million students in all ten provinces. The Federation and its predecessor organisations have represented students in Canada since 1927.

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