Jason Kenney’s Christmas gift to post-secondary students? A 7% tuition hike

FILE: The path between Athabasca Hall and the University Club, covered in a carpet of elm and poplar leaves. (Photo By daryl_mitchell from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada – Athabasca Hall Sidewalk, CC BY-SA 2.0)

EDMONTON – Athabasca University students will be paying seven per cent higher tuition as a direct result of the UCP’s budget, said the University’s Provost and VP Academic Matthew Prineas in an email to students.

The email sent on Friday afternoon says that the seven per cent increase would take effect in September 2020 to help address “uncertainty around budgets and funding in the coming years.”

The email goes on to describe how the UCP’s budget has forced the University to repurpose $6.7 million internally for the 2021 fiscal year.

“Right before Christmas, students are finding out what Jason Kenney’s $4.7-billion corporate giveaway is costing them and their families,” said David Eggen, NDP Critic for Advanced Education. “A seven per cent tuition hike in addition to the thousands of dollars in extra costs this government is piling on is a tremendous burden to add to students and families heading into the holiday season.”

David Eggen is available for interviews upon request.