Quebec Premier Pauline Marois has been inspired by the decision of First Minister of Scotland Alex Salmond to lower the voting age to 16-years-old for the next Scottish referendum in 2014.
Although it was not a part of the party’s platform during the 2012 election, Marois and the Parti Québécois have indicated that they are in favour of following suit.
The only reason I believe Marois is not completely against lowering the voting age to 16 is for one particular reason; she is trying to get the youth’s vote. Marois seems to have many tricks up her sleeve and trying to change the voting age in order to benefit her own party in the next election is one of them.
There is no issue with the voting age, so why change it? At 16 years of age, most teenagers have definitely not acquired enough knowledge to decide what is best for our province. Not every 16-year-old is uneducated and ignorant in regards to Quebec politics, or politics in general, but a strong majority of this demographic will not take these privileges as seriously as they should be taken.
To me, simply possessing some form of driving privileges at the age of 16, especially in Quebec, is too young. A significant amount of accidents occur because of teenagers and young adults. Statistics Canada reports “about 80% of speeders involved in a fatal crash were under the age of 45, and half of those speeders were aged 16-24 years.”
Last year, Argentina lowered the voting age from 18 to 16. and they are not alone Other places in the world like Brazil, Cuba, Ecuador, Nicaragua currently have the voting age at 16. East Timor, Indonesia, North Korea, Seychelles and Sudan give the right to vote at the age of 17.
Marois had planned on discussing the voting age with Alex Salmond in Edinburgh, however, in an interview with The Globe and Mail, Marois stated that “Scotland is different. Quebec is different.”
If Marois realizes that Scotland and Quebec are so different, why is she all of a sudden so adamant about having the voting age lowered? It is very hard to take a law or a strategy that is used in one country, apply it elsewhere and hope for the same results.
Marois told The Toronto Star that “The Parti Québécois wants to change politics,” but the thing she doesn’t understand is that change is not needed in this case.
Marois might also be targeting teenagers for their support because many don’t have an extensive background knowledge of Quebec politics aside from what they are taught in class, which can be biased. Another factor is the traditional sovereignty movement, which seems to be growing stronger with young people.
If we are going to give 16-year-olds the privileges of an adult, it needs to be very carefully thought out, and other rules that currently apply to 18-year-olds need to be restructured as well. Come on, Pauline. Why the hassle, if not for your own personal interests? Frankly, I see it as an enormous waste of time and money and a misguided attempt to win over young voters. If 18 is good enough for the rest of Canada, it’s good enough for us.
Concordia announced Jan. 23 that it will enter into a deficit of up to $7.5 million for the 2012-2013 fiscal year; one of the biggest deficits declared in the university’s history.
After the province announced a $124-million slash to university funding across Quebec in December, Concordia administrators were scrambling to find a way to end the winter semester as planned with a loss of $13.2 million.
Concordia President Alan Shepard explained that the cut accounts for approximately five per cent of Concordia’s operating budget and that the interest rate on the deficit will be a standard 2.5 per cent. Shepard went on to say that since provincial funding is dispensed incrementally throughout the school year in the form of an operating grant, Concordia will never see the $13.2 million it had been banking on.
Board of Governors Chair Norman Hébert stated in an interview that “we don’t have a history of running deficits,” and that “both the financial committee and the Board took this extremely seriously.”
University spokesperson Chris Mota confirmed that prior to the government cuts, “this would have been the third year with absolutely no deficit.”
Mota also explained that deficits in the past usually ran between $20,000 to $30,000 and were “not anywhere near what we’re dealing with now.”
As Shepard explained, deficits are a “short-term solution,” and not something the university is eager to enter into. He went on to emphasize that his priority moving forward would be to avoid making any changes which would negatively affect academics, research and student financial aid.
Concordia’s budget has been revised four times since the beginning of the academic year. The university had originally planned for a $600,000 surplus in an earlier draft of the budget, but now the money will go towards covering the $13.2-million loss. The university will also be cutting costs by closing positions which are currently vacant and have been vacant for some time.
Looking to the future, Shepard said that it is still unclear whether or not this government cut will be a one-time occurrence and that “all eyes are on the [education] summit” which is set for Feb. 25 and 26.
Shepard also explained that Concordia will likely not be alone in declaring a deficit.
“It will surprise me if, in the final quarter of the year, anybody has five per cent of the money sitting around and they can just absorb it no problem. We run closer to the bone than that,” he said.
When Quebec Premier Pauline Marois cancelled the tuition hike imposed by the former Liberal government in the fall, universities were promised additional funding to make up for the loss in revenue. As of yet, Concordia hasn’t received confirmation about the exact amount or when that money will be transferred.
One of the most anticipated promises from the Parti Québécois, the provincial summit on education, will be held next month to discuss future plans for Quebec’s governance and management for post-secondary education funds.
As a part of her agenda, Premier Pauline Marois abolished the proposed tuition fee increase of $1,778 over the next seven years imposed by the previous provincial government led by former Premier Jean Charest. Near the end of last year, Marois stated that it was time for discussion and an open debate on the subject of education in the province. The conference, to be held on Feb. 25 and 26, will not only examine the dispute on tuition, but other aspects of higher education and identify the main goals of the universities in Quebec. It will take into account the voices of university administrations, students and taxpayers in the province.
The provincial government has been accepting comments and questions electronically, through a website and a Facebook page created for the summit. Denis Comeau, a real-estate agent, says he remains skeptical on the contribution of opinions from taxpayers like himself despite the outreach from the PQ.
“The system is only as good as the people who use it and maintain it,” said Comeau.
He explained that when it comes down to the summit itself, a pressing issue is the quality of university education and some schools are “suffering” from being underfunded.
Due to Marois’ freeze on tuition, universities are short $32 million. In December, the provincial government slashed universities’ budgets by $124 million, with Concordia suffering a $13.2 million loss.
In an interview with The Concordian, University President Alan Shepard said that the best scenario which can come from the summit next month is having “clarity of funding, support for students, research funding, [and] renewed and refreshed commitment to the central role of universities in our society.”
Marois acknowledged that many will push for tuition increase, others for indexations and the rest for free tuition — a subject that many Quebec residents remain divided on.
“I do believe that they should not raise the tuition more, in fact, they should lower the tuition,” said TD Canada Trust financial sales representative Vita Carrara. “It is already very difficult for young adults to be able to afford today’s living expenses and have to pay for their own education.”
Karyna Bourgault, a dog groomer, said she believes that the relevance of the curriculum taught in the post-secondary environment should be reviewed. She feels that students shouldn’t have to pay more tuition because “accessible education will allow more opportunities.”
Members of the Liberal Party of Quebec, the official opposition of the PQ, believe the PQ is going into the summit with their minds already made up on the issue of tuition. If the freeze continues, some Liberals argue it will put Quebec universities in an $80 million shortfall.
“Students should pay more tuition, eventually. You can’t keep something like that frozen. I don’t agree with having to pay more, but yet, just like opus passes, people will be forced to pay more,” said Joe De Cicco, a customer service representative at Indigo Books and Music.“I don’t see any other way around it.”
The Concordia Student Union will start campaigning for student involvement in order to hold a vote related to the provincial government’s upcoming education summit scheduled for mid-February.
The CSU will launch a website within the next two weeks that will allow students to pitch their concerns with higher education and specifically the governance of Concordia. In order to reach out to as many students as possible, the CSU chose to have undergraduates participate online and vote on positions proposed by fellow students.
To submit a position, students must support their claims with academic research consisting of three articles. According to VP external Simon-Pierre Lauzon, who is co-ordinating the initiative, the CSU will help individuals with research if they request it.
The website will also allow for discussion of the proposals put forth on the four themes to be discussed at the summit including quality of post-secondary education, the accessibility of higher education, the governance and financing of universities, and the contribution of research establishments to the development of Quebec. Then students will have the opportunity to vote on what they believe should be conveyed to the provincial government at the summit.
The Parti Québécois promised the education summit would address the concerns and issues that arose during the student strike movement. Lauzon hopes the CSU will compile 10 proposals per theme, allotting for a total of 40 positions to represent the opinions of the undergraduate student body at Concordia.
One concern is the participation of students. In order to meet quorum, at least 450 students must participate in the vote and it must be done by the end of the month. The CSU will encourage students to participate by campaigning in classrooms, buildings, online, with posters and purchasing advertising space.
“Everybody is going to hear about it if they are anywhere on campus,” said Lauzon. “We’re hoping two to three thousand people participate.”
Student Senator Wendy Kraus-Heitmann said she is worried about the details of the campaign proposal, stating it posed “major problems as written” and that she is concerned with time constraints. In an email to Lauzon, she suggested that the CSU hold a series of town halls and bring positions and stances by the Fédération étudiante universitaire du Québec to students for them to vote on. The lack of time will make it less likely to hold a “meaningful” consultation according to Kraus-Heitmann.
Lauzon said that certain student faculty associations, specifically the Arts and Science Federation of Associations and the Engineering and Computer Science Association have already taken steps to contact their students to voice opinions. In September, ASFA’s executive took a strong stance in ensuring Arts and Science students would be heard in the upcoming conference.
While the CSU will not be present at the education summit itself since it is invite-only, Concordia students will be represented by the FEUQ. The results of the vote will be communicated to the university association so that Concordia-specific concerns may be voiced at the summit. Lauzon clarified that the CSU may also send a memo to the organizers of the summit if there is something they feel wasn’t addressed by FEUQ.
Some students like Mike de Sévigné, an independent student at Concordia, don’t have any concerns he wants brought to the summit.
“I’ve always been happy with what I have,” said de Sévigné. “But I do hope they [the government] listen to the concerns of other students and fulfill those needs.”
The year 2012 is coming to a close my dear friends, and what a year it’s been. From American politics to Montreal soccer, we’ve summed up some of the most interesting events of the past year here.
Image via Flickr.
Robin Della Corte Assistant news editor
In a province that is so often identified by it’s language issues, having an English mayor elected in office is a very symbolic moment for many people around the Montreal area.
Michael Applebaum’s election not only shows diversity, but a change in the right direction. After Pauline’s Marois’ election, I was terrified to live in a province where language mattered more than economic and social issues and where putting money towards ‘language police’ was a priority. After Applebaum’s victory against a French-speaking candidate I felt as if, politically and socially, things had changed slightly. Applebaum, being both English and Jewish, was elected, and it seemed as though most of the people in power didn’t care so much as to what language he spoke, but actually what he was going to do to improve our city and have the job done right.
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Stephanie La Leggia Life editor
Image via Flickr.
Even with all the warnings and evacuation calls, Hurricane Sandy came as kind of a shock to me. Many underestimated its power and potential level of deconstruction, destroying homes and diminishing people’s lives and belongings to a suitcase.
Although I may live in Montreal, I’m a New Yorker at heart, travelling down at least three times year. With family and friends to worry about, I constantly checked CNN for updates. Although the video footages and article were quite alarming, it wasn’t until I saw photos of the aftermath that the horror of it really hit me; photos of people line-up to get their fill of gas, giant trees in the middle of the street, the diminished Jersey shore boardwalk, and people’s belonging scattered about like they were insignificant pieces of junk.
While some simply lost power in their skyscraper apartment building, others were not so lucky. When people think of New York, they narrow their focus to Manhattan, forgetting about the other burrows that were so badly hit, like Staten Island. Not to mention the damages the hurricane caused in Haiti. The photos of the aftermath and the personal stories of those without a home and insurance really put things in perspective for me. While my biggest concern may have been an assignment due by the end of the week, these survivors had to worry about basic needs like heating and food, needs that we take for granted on a daily basis.
You ask me what affected me most this year as 2012 comes to an end, it’s Hurricane Sandy, a hurricane so powerful it stood up against the Big Apple.
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Image via Flickr.
Kevin Duarte Sports editor
The event that affected me the most in 2012 was the Montreal Impact’s inaugural season in Major League Soccer. To start, I am a diehard football fan… the real one, played with a round ball on the floor. Football, or to make it less confusing, soccer, is an integral part of my life. Right up there with breathing and eating, I’d say. The Impact expansion into the MLS finally gave me a chance to watch some decent soccer in my hometown. Prior to this year, Montreal was playing in the second tier of North American Soccer, a league that never really meant much at all. This past year, they just finished their first season in North America’s top flight. Fans got a chance to see some world-class players visit Saputo Stadium. More importantly for me, someone who studies the game as a coach, it was the higher quality of the sport that I enjoyed the most.
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Image via Flickr.
Casandra De Masi Staff writer
Thousands watched, as did I, as Pauline Marois gave her acceptance speech in September. She had just become the first female premier of Quebec, and in the same night lived through an alleged assassination attempt. It all happened so quickly and it almost overshadowed the election itself. Throughout the election campaign, the wedge between the Francophone and the Anglophone community became larger and sharper. There were arguments and all-around ignorant behavior from both sides. This was the icing on the spoiled cake. As someone who lives and works in a French community, but was raised in a primarily English household, it just puzzled me as to why so much emphasis was being put on language, with so many other issues plaguing our province.
As horrible as the shooter’s actions were, especially because he killed an innocent man, he led people to a realization. People realized that, ‘Hey, maybe we should band together and focus on things that affect all of us, no matter what language we speak.’
That week, people came together, condemning this man’s actions. Just to see people agreeing that we should learn to coexist, that this silly war needs to end, was refreshing. It was hopeful. It didn’t last long, but knowing it is possible is what counts.
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Image via Flickr.
Paula Rivas Managing editor
An event that kept me on the edge of my seat, as odd as it may sound to many people my age, was Obama’s victory in the American elections. The buildup from the presidential debates left my head spinning and I was looking forward to the elections like a child waiting for Christmas Eve.
The day of this historic event, I turned off my phone, avoided plans with any of my friends, and watched the CNN coverage like a hawk while Wolf Blitzer and other A-team reporters announced the advancement of the polls. My heart jumped with excitement as the state I spent 10 years of my life in, Maryland, turned blue in support for Obama. The blue wave that followed as the hours passed made me swell with pride to again see a glimpse of the United States that I love — not the ugly, homophobic and closed-minded side, but the side that many Canadians unfortunately don’t get to see. I’m talking about a United States that stands up to defend women’s rights when archaic restrictions were being suggested to govern women’s bodies and also to defend Hispanics when immigration laws were threatening to throw out hard-working citizens.
My own family was once living illegally as Hispanics in the States and we felt the harsh reality of being treated like second-class citizens. But most of all, to defend an America devoted to the idea that coming together as one is stronger than the idea that every man is out there for themselves. Thanks Obama, you made my year.
The Parti Québécois plans to eliminate Quebec’s hefty deficit by the end of the next fiscal year through its new budget proposed last Tuesday that offers tax increases coupled with spending cuts.
The budget presented by Finance Minister Nicolas Marceau includes a raise in taxes on banks and the wealthy, and an increase in sin taxes on products such as tobacco and alcohol. Individuals earning more than $100,000 per year will see their income taxes increase by 1.75 per cent to 25.75 per cent; combined with federal taxes, Quebec’s highest earning residents will pay nearly 50 per cent of their salary in taxes.
The provincial government also backtracked on its electoral promise to remove the health-care tax initially implemented by the Charest Liberals. The proposed plan shows a shift in the health-care tax, which will now be factored by income. Adults earning less than $18,000 per year will not be required to pay and those earning more will contribute $100, $200 or up to $1,000 annually. The budget also introduced a tax break for parents with children engaging in sports or cultural activities, and a scaling back of Hydro-Québec rate hikes due to begin in 2014.
The Liberals and the Coalition Avenir Québec, the two opposition parties, did not approve of the provincial budget which may trigger a snap election in January that could potentially remove the PQ from power. While the Liberals were quick to criticize Marceau at first, party members backed down from their threats to potentially form a coalition. Since the PQ holds a minority provincial government, it requires the support of the opposition to move forward with the proposed budget.
One area that received little attention in the new budget was post-secondary education. Universities and students hoping for more information on future funding were left in the dark as the budget specifically mentions that as the government does not know “the decisions that will flow from the summit on higher education” they cannot make specific plans.
“Another reason why not to trust that elections will resolve problems,” said Vanier College student and Mob Squad member, Anthony Kantara. “It just encourages us to further mobilize.”
What little information is available in the budget’s section on universities may be disappointing for some students. With the tuition fee increase cancelled, the budget outlines the amount of money this has cost the government, starting with $24 million this year and continuing upwards at the same rate each following year. Additionally, the PQ plans to reduce the money available to students for loans and bursaries to 2011-12 levels after this year, undoing the increase that the Liberal government put in place. The cancellation of the tuition hike is the reason cited for this reduction.
A single line in the universities section of the budget indicates that, as previously stated, the government “could compensate universities for the shortfall stemming from cancellation of the tuition hike” but does not provide any details.
Concordia University spokesperson Chris Mota said that Concordia’s position was reflected in a statement issued by the Conférence des recteurs et des principaux des universités du Québec, which represents 19 universities in total including McGill University, Bishops University and Université Laval. In the statement, CREPUQ raises several concerns, including the impact the budget will have on research in Quebec, its commitment to compensating universities for the reversal of the tuition increase, and for the fact that no commitment to compensate universities for additional costs incurred by student protests has been made.
Martine Desjardins, president of the Fédération étudiante universitaire du Québec, told The Concordian that she did not believe universities had truly lost money to the cancellation of the tuition hikes, saying that “when you’re good administrators, you’re planning for the worst, you’re not planning for the best. It’s their problem if there is a loss because they should have planned for this first, because we didn’t know if the tuition fees would be going up.”
Desjardins also said that FEUQ was disappointed with the lack of research funding, and that many items on the budget would be brought to the upcoming education summit for discussion.
“Every little part of the budget will be discussed, hopefully, in the summit, but right now we have a lot of concerns,” she said. “We’re very disappointed that the PQ are using the same financial plan as the Liberals were proposing last year, so we still have the same structure.”
They don’t have the power to put criminals behind bars. They don’t have the power to take people to court. They certainly don’t have the power to accuse witnesses of wrongdoing. However the Charbonneau Commission has the ability to inform the people and in a society like ours, an informed people is the greatest power of all.
“The commission’s investigations are going well, in terms of one of the purposes of the commission, which was to make public the corruption in Montreal,” said Marcel Danis, Concordia University professor, lawyer, and former politician, in an interview with The Concordian.
The Charbonneau Commission was created by Jean Charest’s Liberal party on Oct. 19, 2011. As I look at the past year, I must say, I’m fairly impressed with the work this commission has done. As a result of the testimonies made by witnesses on the stand at the commission, two major Quebec politicians, Gerald Tremblay, now ex-Montreal mayor, and Gilles Vaillancourt, ex-Laval mayor, have resigned amid corruption allegations.
This is what Montreal’s corrupt construction industry, and the system as a whole, needs; a fresh start. The Charbonneau Commission, chaired by Justice France Charbonneau is doing just that. Although they don’t have the power, like I said, to accuse people in court, they have shed substantial light on the process in which public contracts are given out, and many politicians, Vaillancourt and Tremblay among them, were ratted out in the process.
The commission, however, does have certain drawbacks. Not only can they not make arrests, but witnesses who testify are completely protected. This, according to Danis, has pushed many people to come and testify.
“One of the bad things about the commission is that when someone goes to testify at the commission, what they say cannot be used against them,” said Danis. “That’s why some police officers were against the fact of creating the commission in the first place.”
However, one must not focus on that aspect of the commission, because it seriously undermines what the commission is actually doing, which is more valuable; scaring corruption out of the industry.
Lino Zambito, ex-construction boss and one of the more popular witnesses at the Charbonneau Commission, said it himself that the “process really hasn’t been the same lately.” People are finally aware of how corrupt the process was, and measures are being put in place to try and fix the system. This, all thanks to the commission.
“There’s no doubt that one of the good things of the commission is that it will scare people who are civil servants to work in the city of Montreal,” said Danis. “They’re more likely to be very careful at least for a number of years.”
According to Danis, prices for public contracts have dropped substantially since 2009, having “gone down between 25 and 30 per cent for sewer work and sidewalk work.”
More importantly, the commission is enlightening the people. Montreal is littered with corrupt politicians and a large mafia. Joe Pistone, also known as Donnie Brasco, infiltrated the New York mafia in the 1970s and ‘80s, and was invited to testify at the Charbonneau Commission. His experience has taught him a lot about the inner workings of the mafia, and he put it simply enough.
“Without that corruption, they really can’t operate,” said Pistone. “And as soon as the public realizes that, it lessens the impact that the mafia can have on us.”
Montreal needs to get back on track as one of the best cities in North America. The first step is by cleaning up our streets, and we have the Charbonneau Commission to thank for the progress we’ve made this year.
McGill University's international and out-of-province students are still waiting for their tuition refund. Photo by writer.
Photo by Madelayne Hajek.
Concordia University refunded all students upon receiving official directives from the provincial government concerning the tuition fee rollback while McGill University’s international and out-of-province students are still waiting on adjustments to their accounts.
The letter sent out to Quebec universities earlier this month confirmed the cancellation of the proposed tuition fees increase. The document also cites that the Parti Québécois is considering raising tuition fees for out-of-province and international students. McGill chose not to reimburse its foreign students in anticipation of an increase.
“We all got the same instructions,” said Chris Mota, Concordia University spokesperson. “We responded in one fashion and McGill chose a different route.”
This was also confirmed by Chief Financial Officer Patrick Kelley, who told The Concordian that the administration at McGill did not interpret the official directives from the the provincial government differently than Concordia but decided differently.
Simon-Pierre Lauzon, VP external of the Concordia Student Union, said he didn’t agree with the direction that McGill chose to take.
“McGill is kind of going in another direction and not doing what I think they’re supposed to be doing right now,” said Lauzon. “I find it very unfortunate that McGill students find themselves in this situation, it’s very unfair and I hope that it gets resolved quickly.”
Joël Bouchard, the press attaché for Pierre Duchesne, the minister of Higher Education, Research, Science and Technology, confirmed that no decision has yet been made about increasing tuition fees and that the proposition is being studied.
“If we are then told at a later date that we have to increase tuition for out of province and international students, we will do so,” said Mota.
McGill University spokesperson Carole Graveline explained that the university has not refunded the increase initially tabled by the Charest Liberals because of a potential increase for out-of-province and international students on the way. Although there’s no indication of precisely when the increase will be announced, if there will be one, and just how much it will amount to, it remains “very likely” according to Graveline.
VP external Robin Reid-Fraser of the Students’ Society of McGill University said the process and wait has been disheartening.
“People are frustrated and confused,” said Reid-Fraser. “The contact we have with the administration is that they’re waiting on the government to put out their budget and really finalize what the plan is with the international and out-of-province fees.”
The Parti Québécois minority government will present a budget on Nov. 20.
“I presume there will be something in the budget but there’s no knowing,” said Graveline. “We’re not waiting on the budget, all we’re doing is taking a different path.”
Premier Pauline Marois made headlines when she gave her inaugural speech at the National Assembly two weeks ago, but not necessarily for the right reasons.
Many veterans and citizens across Canada were offended when they realized the poppy she was wearing in honour of Remembrance Day had a fleur-de-lis, a symbol of Quebec’s cultural and political identity, over it.
After the incident, Marois’ director of communications, Shirley Bishop, told the Globe and Mail that Marois’ “objective was not to create a controversy.”
If her objective was not to create controversy, then what was it? To promote Quebec’s national identity on a holiday that celebrates Canada’s triumphs in past wars? To solely support Quebec’s veterans in the war?
Marois proved to be incredibly close-minded in the past few months, and that’s made her look ignorant and disrespectful.
Bishop continues to tell the Globe and Mail that “Marois has a lot of respect for veterans and a lot of respect for all the people who’ve lost their lives for their homeland. The fact of putting a fleur-de-lis was not at all, not at all, a political act … She’ll continue to wear the poppy but, given the controversy, she will not put the fleur-de-lis.”
I believe Marois knew very well that putting adding the fleur-de-lis pin was a political act. I feel this shows Quebec, and the rest of Canada, that she supports the Quebec soldiers in the war and perhaps doesn’t take any consideration for all the other Canadians soldiers who lost their lives as well.
Margot Arsenault, the Royal Canadian Legion’s provincial president, also believes that it was a political act and told the Globe and Mail that “[the veterans] fought for Canada, not just Quebec.”
Arsenault stated that she received 15 calls and about a dozen emails that day from veterans (even Quebec veterans) who claimed the act was unacceptable. The Legion states on their website that the poppy is not to be modified or altered in any way.
Remembrance Day is the day Canada remembers all the veterans who fought for freedom. To put any political symbol within the poppy automatically portrays you as supporting a single portion rather than the whole. In Marois’ case, having the Quebec symbol placed over this Canadian symbol clearly shows that Marois prefers one over the other.
For Marois’ director of communications to actually state that she didn’t want to create controversy is very ironic because Marois has been stirring up controversy ever since she was elected.
I’m extremely fed up with Marois’ acts. It’s embarrassing to be a part of a province with a premier who doesn’t recognize that we live in Canada. Furthermore, on a holiday that means so much to most Canadians, trying to display her political views through a symbol that symbolizes unity of Canada is extremely frustrating.
Marois would have been hard-pressed to keep wearing the fleur-de-lis, and I give her credit for taking it off just in time. Maybe this once, she can respect a Canadian tradition without making it strictly Quebec related.
Full-time Quebec students can expect a $254 refund for the 2012-2013 academic year. Photo via Flickr.
Full-time Quebec students can expect a $254 refund for the 2012-2013 academic year. Photo via Flickr.
The provincial government issued official directives to post-secondary institutions on the rollback of the tuition fee increase last week.
Quebec university students will be reimbursed the additional money they paid as part of the Charest Liberals provincial budget that sought to lift the freeze on tuition fees. Therefore, full-time Quebec students can expect a full refund or credit of the $127.05 increase per term or total of $254 for the 2012-2013 academic year.
Jean Charest, the former premier of Quebec, slated an increase of $325 a year over a total of five years for a hike of $1,625 sparking a seven-month long student strike movement. While negotiating with student leaders, the government then escalated the original increase from $1,625 to a total of $1,778 over seven years. Students this year were required to pay an additional $8.75 per credit.
Although Premier Pauline Marois announced the cancellation of the hike the day after the Parti Québécois won a minority government in the provincial election Sept. 4, universities were waiting upon official, written directives from the Quebec government before issuing a refund.
Joël Bouchard, the press attaché for Pierre Duchesne, the minister of Higher Education, Research, Science and Technology, confirmed in an interview with The Concordian that universities could expect instructions from the government in the following days.
McGill University announced on Sunday that its administration would be taking steps to apply the refund to students who pay Quebec tuition rates. Unlike Concordia, international and out-of-province students at McGill will not be reimbursed until the provincial government “renders its final decision” according to the statement.
In comparison, Concordia University released a statement online on Thursday Nov. 1 to inform all students that an adjustment and credit would be made to their fees for next semester. However, if students wish to be reimbursed before January, they can submit a request through their MyConcordia student portal and the university will comply.
Concordia President Alan Shepard discussed the refund during presidential remarks at Senate on Friday, saying that the downside of reimbursing students is that “it costs money to make those cheques” but that the university would issue them nonetheless.
Not all universities have issued an official notice of the repeal but both Concordia and Université du Québec à Montréal addressed statements to all students.
For Heather Gleason-Beard, a second-year education student at McGill from Toronto, she felt it was unfair that only Quebec residents received a reimbursement.
They did say they are awaiting to hear from the government, … so it may happen,” said Gleason-Beard. “It is pretty frustrating and unfair but I won’t lie, it is something I would expect from McGill.”
The Concordian contacted McGill, but the director of media relations could give no information on the matter.
Many student protests took place last spring, including this one on McGill College St. in March 2012. Photo by Navneet Pall.
Dozens of student protests took place last spring, including this one on McGill College St. in March 2012. Photo by Navneet Pall.
The costs of this year’s student strike movement is the centre of attention yet again as the l’Université du Québec à Montréal claims the protests associated with the university amounted to $20 million and the provincial government estimates that overall costs for all post-secondary institutions are at $40 million and counting.
Both claims, made last week by the university’s rector Claude Corbo and Pierre Duchesne, the minister of Higher Education, Research, Science and Technology, respectively, attracted attention and criticism.
Martine Desjardins, president of the Fédération étudiante universitaire du Québec, was critical of the figures provided by UQAM and Duchesne.
“We have information that says it’s not 20 or 40 million dollars,” she said in an interview with The Concordian, “But that the strike cost the government over 150 million dollars, because we explain it to include costs for teachers, for assistants, also for people who work in the libraries. There are a lot of costs involved.”
“Of course the strike has cost a lot,” Desjardins added. “But I doubt UQAM has $20 million only due to the strike, actually I expect it to be more. They’re trying to get more and more money from the government because they’re a little bit shocked that there are no more tuition fee hikes anymore.”
For Concordia University the estimated costs came to a much lower figure of $226,755.39, all for additional security costs according to Chris Mota, university spokesperson.
“I know at other universities there was physical damage and there were other issues but at Concordia it was only the additional security,” she said.
In terms of security, McGill University devoted $275,233.39 of its budget for additional security while UQAM spent $841,414.95 and the Université de Montréal spent the least at $151,043.19 for the winter semester.
Outside of the education sector, other groups bore heavy costs from the protests as well. While the Service de police de la Ville de Montréal refuses to release any estimates of damage without a formal request filed under the Access to Information Act, the overtime pay for SPVM employees from February to June alone cost a hefty $7.3 million according to figures obtained by Radio-Canada earlier this year.
Steve Siozios, president of the Crescent Street Merchant’s Association, told The Concordian that they estimate their losses to be an average loss per business of 20 per cent at the height of the protests.
“We lost 20 per cent in April, May and June,” he said. “But it’s also more extensive than that because it kind of killed the whole summer. It had a very negative effect on merchants.”
Siozios also explained how a false perception of violence and danger in the downtown core scared people from outside of the city away from visiting.
“There were incidents, but it wasn’t as bad as they thought it was,” he said. “All of it has led to a very bad year so far. It’s closed down businesses already and by year end it’s going to close down more.”
Desjardins, meanwhile, believes the blame for costs lie firmly with the Liberal government, which is currently the official opposition in Quebec.
“They should be ashamed. They should be the ones going out and explaining themselves, why did they take so long to sit at the table and negotiate with us?” she said. “It should have been done earlier and I’m pretty sure we could have achieved an agreement at that time, in April, in March, but they waited for a general election and I think they should be ashamed of themselves.”
“They should be in front of the population and answering questions because we have been losing a lot of money over their way of handling this crisis,” added Desjardins.
The education of Quebec students may have a stronger focus on the history of the sovereignty movement and fewer early English language classes based on comments recently made by Quebec’s education minister.
In an interview originally published in Le Soleil, the Parti Québécois’ Education Minister Marie Malavoy said that she wants to hold off on the previous Liberal government’s plans to have intensive English language classes for sixth grade students in French elementary schools. Malavoy desires to strengthen the emphasis of Quebec sovereignty in history classes in order to highlight how it has shaped the province.
Shortly after the statements were made, the English Montreal School Board issued a press release in which it stated that “more than adequate attention is already being devoted to this dossier” with regards to the approach to Quebec nationalism used in secondary institutions’ curriculum.
Angela Mancini, the EMSB chairperson, believes that the curriculum sufficiently addresses national unity and Quebec. In a statement, Mancini said she consulted the school board’s pedagogical services department on the subject, and the material dedicated to Quebec sovereignty is “quite extensive.”
Katie Shea, a second-year McGill University education student majoring in history, says she is unsure of how the provincial government plans to change the curriculum.
“We learn it from the point of view of the French and no one else,” Shea said. “We don’t even learn the history of Canada, we only learn about Quebec.”
Shea went on to explain that all history lessons offer a certain bias and that if the curriculum were to change, secondary education teachers will have to emphasize the PQ’s opinions and ignore other aspects of Canadian history.
“What is the provincial government going to do, not talk about other provinces at all?” asked Shea.
Tina Christensen, a mother of two from the West Island, does not believe that the separatist movement needs any more attention in history class.
“I think it’s fine to make kids aware of it, but to actually teach it in schools?” said Christensen.”I think that political views should be the parents’ choice.”
Jean-Michel Nahas, spokesperson for the Commission scolaire Marguerite-Bourgeoys, said in a telephone interview that the change of plans for advanced English courses has had little impact on the school board as the previous government was slow to communicate the specific details they required to move forward.
“We decided that for the first year this program would be on a voluntary basis, and we had only one school who said [they] would like to try it,” said Nahas. “Last summer we were waiting for more information on the future of this program, … but we did not receive any other information.”
According to Nahas, the project proposed by the former Charest government was flawed since it provided few directives for interested schools. Since the CSMB has elementary schools located in the West Island where many students possess advanced English language skills, the school board was uncertain if they could modify the program to meet the skill levels of the students.
“Can we adjust the program for them as they already speak English and write in English?” said Nahas. “For that kind of question we had no specific answers.”
Until clear policies are in place and instructions are handed down by the PQ government, the CSMB will not be making any concrete plans.
