August 26, 2010
NDP Can See What Record Investment Looks Like

VANDERHOOF – During NDP leader Carole James’ visit to University of Northern British Columbia and College of New Caledonia, she’ll have the opportunity to see more classrooms and greater opportunity for the north, says Nechako Lake MLA John Rustad.

“Northern B.C. has seen massive investment in capital for advanced education, which is something that the NDP have never understood. During their time in government, students suffered through fewer classes and longer wait lists,” says Rustad. “Whether it’s the expansion in skills training for the trades or training doctors in the north, for the north, there are plenty of places for Carole James to see what investment in post secondary can do for a community.”

The previous NDP government froze tuition but failed to provide post‐secondary schools with funding to make up for lost revenue. The result of the frozen tuition was fewer classes, longer wait lists and higher cut off points for admission.

Even Carole James admitted the tuition freeze was a failure when she told Nanaimo Chamber of Commerce, “…one of the problems with the previous tuition freeze… is that it didn’t include additional monies for colleges and universities.” (Jan 21/05)

Despite the lessons of the 1990’s, Carole James wants to turn back the clock and bring back a tuition freeze and rob institutions of funding.

“Typical NDP logic is simple: continue with the same bad idea, but expect different results. That’s simply reckless and irresponsible,” continued Rustad. “We’ve seen that investment in post-secondary education results in more opportunities for British Columbians and more jobs to support B.C. families.

“If we did it their way, we wouldn’t have the 10 new classes announced today by the College of New Caledonia, we’d have fewer nurses and doctors in the north and we would not see expanded campuses in Prince George, Burns Lake, Quesnel and Fort St. John. We are going to continue doing the right thing and invest in the future.”

Since 2001, we’ve undertaken the largest post‐secondary expansion in the history of B.C., spending $1.9 billion on capital funding for over 900 projects on campuses throughout B.C.

To learn more about John’s work in Nechako Lakes, visit www.johnrustadmla.bc.ca.

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