Ontario Students Plan Demonstration Over Ford Government’s Osap Changes - Beritaja

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After the Ford government made sweeping changes to really student loans successful Ontario operate, disgruntled students are readying to rally astatine Queen’s Park connected Wednesday.

Students are organizing a “hands disconnected our education” protestation astatine the legislature opening about 12 p.m., focusing vexation connected the province’s determination to let tuition interest increases and shifting from grants to loans.

“The Ford government’s determination to unfastened the floodgates to tuition increases AND the decimation of OSAP will destruct what’s near of acquisition successful Ontario,” a station from the Guelph University students read.

“Enough is capable – it’s clip to return to the streets and flex the existent powerfulness of students successful the province.”

Frustration pinch the changes has been simmering since the Ford authorities first announced them connected Feb. 12, allowing colleges and universities to summation tuition by 2 per cent a year, offering them much authorities rate and changing really OSAP works.

The second alteration is the 1 that has attracted the about energy, shifting nationalist backing for students from loans to grants.

The existing proportionality of OSAP was about 85 per cent grants to 15 per cent loans, the authorities said, but starting this fall, students will person a maximum of 25 per cent of their OSAP backing arsenic grants.

Premier Doug Ford has said shifting from loans to grants would make students “accountable” for the money they return from the government, referencing alleged misuse of student finance.

“You are taking taxation dollars and you person to beryllium held accountable erstwhile you return taxation dollars,” he said. “It’s not a freebie anymore. Money doesn’t turn connected trees.”

The Ministry of Colleges, Universities, Research Excellence and Security insists that, contempt the premier’s comments, the move to loans is basal to guarantee the financial stableness of the program.

In 2024, they said, location were 862 imaginable investigations for fraud crossed each OSAP grants and loans. The fig was 902 for 2025. The ministry would not corroborate really galore of those reports really recovered fraud aliases the full dollar worth of the alleged fraud.

Opposition parties person pushed backmost against the changes, saying the authorities is harming people’s prospects for post-secondary education.

The Ontario NDP said its “Save OSAP” run had seen 30,000 sign-ups and 30,000 emails sent to the offices of Progressive Conservative MPPs. They said 700 calls had been made during a telephone blitz.

The legislative assembly said it had not been told really ample the rally would be, and the Canadian Federation of Students did not respond to questions up of publication.

The arena is expected to tally from about 12:30 to 4 p.m.

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"Ontario Students Plan Demonstration Over Ford Government’s Osap Changes - Beritaja"

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