Higher Education Minister Pascale Déry was forced on Friday to defend tooth and nail her management of needs in CEGEPs and universities, where the Liberal opposition foresees a “disaster” if more money is not invested in the maintenance of these establishments.
For two hours, the Quebec Liberal Party’s spokesperson for higher education, Michelle Setlakwe, questioned Pascale Déry on Friday morning at the National Assembly about what the official opposition had described as the “disaster announced for our CEGEPs and universities.”
Mme Setlakwe thus expressed concern about the rapid deterioration of CEGEPs, of which only 35% are considered to be in good condition, far from the target of 70% that Quebec wants to reach by 2026. “I don’t see how we can get there” while imposing “cuts” in the funding for the maintenance of these establishments, the opposition elected official said.
“We pick up the pieces”
The latter was thus referring to the directive sent on July 31 by Minister Déry to the province’s CEGEPs and universities in order to impose on them a maximum authorized level of expenses intended in particular for maintenance and expansion projects. For many of these institutions, this ceiling reduces by several tens of millions of dollars the investments they will be able to make this year to upgrade their infrastructures and accommodate a growing student population.
“I am a little surprised today and astounded to see to what extent the member talks about a disaster that is coming in higher education when we have been picking up the pieces for several years. There has been a huge amount of catching up that has been going on for several years,” replied Pascale Déry, who stated that her government is investing much more in CEGEPs and universities than the Liberals did when they were in power in Quebec.
“It’s true that there are challenges,” Mr.me Déry, who acknowledged that colossal investments are required in several establishments in the province. However, “we cannot do everything at the same time,” she argued.
“I obviously have to monitor spending at the project level since costs have exploded. There are projects that go through [dont le coût] “doubles,” the minister continued. The spending cap imposed on CEGEPs and universities is therefore intended to allow Quebec to monitor “the progress of these projects” in order to respect “the ability to pay” of Quebecers, she said.
Austerity
Comments that made Québec solidaire MP Sol Zanetti jump on Friday. “What shocks me is that the minister does not recognize that this is austerity […] She claims that this is sound management and that it is to better monitor projects. But what paternalism and condescension does that imply? What does that say about the opinion she has of the general management of CEGEPs and universities in Quebec? That these are people who do not know how to prioritize,” he said.
An observation shared by the President and CEO of the Fédération des cégeps, Marie Montpetit, who realizes that the directive imposed on its members “weakens the autonomy of CEGEPs” and limits their ability to “react to unforeseen breakdowns of aging infrastructure.” “It’s an attack on their governance” that risks having the effect of harming the maintenance of CEGEPs, whose deterioration risks accelerating instead of being resolved, she warned in an interview with Duty Friday.
“I know there are challenges. I know there are issues,” Mr.me Déry: But this spending ceiling was necessary in the name of “sound management of public funds,” she insisted.
Financial aid criticized
Pascale Déry was also asked to respond to her ministry’s latest annual management report, made public earlier this week, which reported a slight increase on an annual basis in the number of complaints received regarding the calculation of financial assistance for studies (AFE), for a total of 389 last year. This number represents more than a third of all complaints received by the Ministry of Higher Education last year, it noted. The Duty.
In recent months, the AFE has been the subject of much criticism from student associations who believe that the criteria of this program must be revised to take into account, in particular, inflation, which has inflated the price of groceries, rents and travel expenses. Students sometimes find themselves having to study part-time in order to be able to work full-time during their studies, since the AFE cannot provide for all their basic needs, reported The Duty last spring.
Describing this program as a “pillar of higher education,” Minister Déry acknowledged that “indeed, we might need to review the calculation method” of the AFE in order to meet the financial needs of students. “I am always open to improving this program,” she added, without making a concrete commitment to do so.
The Quebec College Student Federation and the Quebec Student Union will hold a press conference in Montreal this Saturday on the financial precariousness of students.