Ontario budget tomorrow - students shouldn’t expect much

Tomorrow, the Dalton McGuinty government will release its latest budget.

I’m not expecting much in the way of direct support for students. Sure, they will increase the textbook grant for next year. (I’m interested to know how many students are missing out on the grant since the government is intentionally not promoting it.) However, tuition will increase at a rate that effectively eliminates the grant. What is more concerning is that I don’t expect the government to lift its freeze on maximum OSAP support. The neediest students will continue to be worse off, year after year, as the government refuses to increase their OSAP support to match inflation and the above-inflation increase in tuition.

Overall, I’m expecting my disappointment in the second-term McGuinty government to continue.