Although the provincial campaign trail has been littered with promises to help post-secondary students, the president of the University of Saskatchewan says politicians need to stay away from promising tuition cuts.
In an interview with CBC News, Peter MacKinnon said that if the government wants to subsidize tuition, it should cut a cheque for each student.
He said the board of governors at a university has the legal right to set its own fees and it needs to be able to exercise that authority.
MacKinnon said problems have arisen in other provinces where governments have tried to regulate tuitions, while promising to fill in with extra money for the universities.
"If you make assurances to the effect that backfilling will be done, those assurances pass. They're forgotten. They recede into memory. The province's circumstances change," MacKinnon said.
"You may have very, very tightly controlled tuition with inadequate operating support coming from public sources. And that over time can be enormously damaging."
MacKinnon said universities can manage tuition themselves, without government interference.
However, he said he understands the appeal of promising lower tuition during an election campaign.
Before the Nov. 7 election was called last month, the NDP government gave the post-secondary institutions extra money so they could freeze tuition.
A key NDP election promise is to reduce tuition by $1,000, with the schools again to be backfilled the money.
The Saskatchewan Party, meanwhile, has promised to give tuition rebates totalling up to $20,000 over seven years for students who stay in Saskatchewan.
The Liberals propose a student housing credit worth $500 per year per student. They also want to change the student loan system so students won't be disqualified from loans based on their parents' income.
Saskatchewan Votes 2007 »
- Saskatchewan Party wins majority government
- Only 10 years into its existence as a political force, the Saskatchewan Party will form a majority government and its leader Brad Wall will be the new premier.
- NDP had a 'good run in government'
- A desire for change pushed the NDP out of 16 years of rule in Saskatchewan, but leader Lorne Calvert said the party has no regrets.
- Liberals fail again to elect single MLA
- The third time was not a charm for Liberal Leader David Karwacki, as voters in Saskatoon Meewasin rebuffed his efforts for elected office.
- Shift in urban vote handed seats to Sask. Party
- The seeds of victory were sown in Regina and Saskatoon, where the Saskatchewan Party picked up five seats — but there were gains in other urban areas, too, that helped seal the election win.
- NDP holds on in Regina, but loses 3 seats
- Fortress Regina continued to stand for the NDP when the dust of Wednesday's election had settled, though its foundation was shaken by a trio of Saskatchewan Party wins.
Constituency Profiles
More Saskatchewan Votes Headlines »
- Saskatchewan Party wins majority government
- Only 10 years into its existence as a political force, the Saskatchewan Party will form a majority government and its leader Brad Wall will be the new premier.
- NDP had a 'good run in government'
- A desire for change pushed the NDP out of 16 years of rule in Saskatchewan, but leader Lorne Calvert said the party has no regrets.
- Liberals fail again to elect single MLA
- The third time was not a charm for Liberal Leader David Karwacki, as voters in Saskatoon Meewasin rebuffed his efforts for elected office.
- Shift in urban vote handed seats to Sask. Party
- The seeds of victory were sown in Regina and Saskatoon, where the Saskatchewan Party picked up five seats — but there were gains in other urban areas, too, that helped seal the election win.
- NDP holds on in Regina, but loses 3 seats
- Fortress Regina continued to stand for the NDP when the dust of Wednesday's election had settled, though its foundation was shaken by a trio of Saskatchewan Party wins.
