Student Aid Falls Victim To Post-Election Campbell Cuts
VANCOUVER— The Campbell government quietly axed several student aid programs in the aftermath of the election, New Democrats said today.
“This is another example of how Gordon Campbell hid the truth from voters during the election,” said Vancouver West-End MLA Spencer Herbert . “He didn’t campaign on
Spencer Herbert cuts to students. We are just a month away from a new school year and people are only now learning that the programs they were depending on have been cut.”
The programs that will be cut include the Permanent Disability Benefits Program, the Debt Reduction in Repayment program, the B.C. Loan Reduction for Residential Care Aide and Home Support Worker Program, Nurses Education Bursary, Health Care Bursary, Early Childhood Educator Loan Assistance Program, and the Premier's Excellence Award program.
Herbert learned of the axed programs from a concerned constituent who contacted his office after being informed that the program she applied for no longer exists.
“We’re nearly half way through the fiscal year but the Campbell government hasn’t yet come clean with students about their plans for these popular programs,” said Herbert. “This is not a good way to manage services that people 
Michelle Mungalldepend on.”
Michelle Mungall , the New Democrat deputy critic for post-secondary education, is worried about the impact of cutting programs designed to help former students manage their debt loads at a time when many people are losing their jobs.
“It’s cold-hearted to axe programs that are aimed at former students who have become permanently disabled and other people who are absolutely unable to make their student debt payments in the middle of a recession,” said Mungall. “Cutting these programs won’t save money in the long term.”
Mungall is also concerned about the government’s decision to cut programs aimed at attracting students to fields where there are significant skills shortages.
“The government used the cloak of good economic times as an excuse to let the costs of post-secondary education soar,” said Mungall. “Now they are cutting programs aimed at retraining the workforce to alleviate the skill shortages looming in our future. It is clear that they have no plan for bettering B.C.’s economy in the long term.”
