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	About Overview Principles Approach Victories Members   Federation Victories By working together through the Canadian Federation of Students, students in British Columbia won a cap on tuition fees, stopping tuition fees from rising faster than inflation (2% in 2005). Combined with victories in other provinces across Canada, this means that the vast majority of students in Canada currently enjoy a tuition fee freeze, cap, or other measure intended to improve the accessibility of the post-secondary education system. Tuition fees have been reduced by 25% in Newfoundland and Labrador, and Nova Scotia has just adopted legislation that will see tuition fees reduced as a result of Bill C-48 the federal budget amendment that provides an additional $1.5 billion in federal funding specifically to reduce tuition fees. Here is a sample of Federation victories over the years. 2005 – Federation members win a cap on tuition fee increases in BC, ending three years of skyrocketing tuition fees. The Federation continues to campaign for a reduction in tuition fees. – The Federation makes affordable, high quality post-secondary education a provincial election issue. Tens of thousands of new voters are registered across BC through the Rock the Vote BC campaign, increasing youth voter turnout by 30%. – The Federation campaigns successfully for $51.8 million in increased funding for access to BC’s colleges, university colleges, and universities. – The federal government budgets $1.5 billion to be transferred to the provinces to increase access to post-secondary education by reducing tuition fees. This is the first time that the federal government takes responsibility for reducing tuition fees. – The Federation’s recommendation to allow international students to work off-campus is implemented across Canada. – The Federation successfully campaigns for an up-front grants program in Ontario. 2004 – Federation members in BC collect 38,000 signatures on a petition that is presented to the legislature, demanding a reduction in tuition fees, an increase in government funding and restoration of the BC Grants program. – The Federation secures a replacement for the BC Grants program, which will forgive students’ debt across BC by up to $50 million in loan remission every year. – The Federation wins a fully funded tuition fee freeze in Ontario. Tuition fees are frozen or reduced in five out of ten provinces. – The Federation convinces Newfoundland’s Conservative government to implement a three-year tuition fee freeze, with additional funding to improve instructional quality. 2003 – The Federation lobbies for and secured changes to the Canada Student Loans Program enabling convention refugees and new Canadians to access Canada Student Loans. 2002 – The Federation launches a successful campaign to block a proposal by Queen’s University that would have opened the door to unlimited tuition fee increases in all programs across the province of Ontario. 2001 – The Federation wins a tuition fee reduction of 5% in BC. Students in Newfoundland enjoy a 10% reduction in tuition fees. 2000 – The Federation wins grants for BC students in up to four years of study, and a fifth year of grants for students with dependants. Tuition fees in BC remain frozen. – The Federation publicly exposes the deficiencies with the Millennium Scholarship Fund that allowed provincial governments to divert the scholarship funds to pay for pre-existing programs. This federal government responds by increasing the tax-exempt amount for scholarships from $500 to $3,000. 1998 – Tuition fees for Adult Basic Education courses in BC are eliminated. – In response to pressure from the Federation, the 1998 federal budget contains a series of modest gains for students in the form of interest and tax-relief on student loans. The government also announced the creation of the Millennium Scholarship Fund. 1997 – The intense lobbying by Federation members forces the federal government to try to mitigate the student debt crisis. The 1997 budget contains several modest measures to help students who are having difficulty repaying loans. 1995 – The Federation wins another tuition fee freeze in British Columbia, which will remain in place for six years. – The Federation organises the largest pan-Canadian student demonstration in Canadian history, mobilising over 100,000 students across Canada, after the federal government releases a review of social policy in Canada which argues for the implementation of Income Contingent Loan Repayment schemes. The federal government abandons its ICLR scheme. 1993 – The Federation defeats a plan by the Ontario government and the Council of Ontario Universities to increase tuition fees by 50%. 1992 – The Federation wins a tuition fee freeze in British Columbia. 1991 – The Federation successfully lobbies for the removal of the three percent tax on Canada Student Loans. 1989 – The Federation defeats the federal government proposal to apply the GST to tuition fees, campus residences and meal plans.
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