Tantramar MLA Megan Mitton in Tweedie Hall at Mt. A. in 2025

Tantramar MLA Megan Mitton is speaking out against the New Brunswick government’s suggestions for cuts to universities and colleges.

“I think the idea of privatizing Mount Allison is just one of the many terrible ideas the Holt government is floating right now when it comes to budget cuts,” the Green MLA said today in a telephone interview.

She was referring to a two-page document presented last week to New Brunswick university and college presidents that included a proposal to eliminate the provincial grant to Mt. A., but provide a “transition trust fund” so that it could become “an independent Canadian Premiere University.”

“Not having a profit motive for post-secondary education is one of the ways that public institutions stand out,” Mitton says.

“Ideally, we would be moving to make our public institutions more accessible as is the case in other countries where there’s lower tuition and in some cases, it’s even basically free.”

No final decisions

Post-Secondary Education Minister Jean-Claude D’Amours told reporters in Fredericton yesterday that the government is seeking post-secondary budget reductions of $35-$50 million, but he said repeatedly that no final decisions have been made.

The government’s two-page document says that the province’s priority sectors are health, skilled trades, early childhood education and schooling from kindergarten to Grade 12.

“In addition, meeting the needs of the labour market remain front and centre, as well as increasing productivity, and the important role of research and innovation,” the document adds.

“We don’t need to take away from say, liberal arts education versus more vocational. We can have both,” Mitton says, adding that community colleges need public support as well.

Post-Secondary Education Minister Jean-Claude D’Amours

The government document suggests closing some college campuses and merging others with universities.

“There are 20+ campuses in NB for 860,000 people,” it says. “Do we need them all?”

It also suggests reducing provincial grants for post-secondary education by 10% with no tuition increases and giving student aid only to New Brunswick students.

Mitton says such steps would make things much harder for students.

“We’ve seen a long-term trend of decreasing public financing for post-secondary education quite significantly,” Mitton says.

“Students who are among the least able to be able to pick up that slack financially are the ones doing it, which translates into significant debt for these often, young people who are looking to go out into the world after school and are saddled with tens of thousands of dollars of debt.”

Short-term thinking

She accuses the Holt government of engaging in short-term thinking in its pursuit of big budget cuts.

“Some of the things they’re proposing are going to have very negative impacts on our economy and our society,” she says, “especially on rural New Brunswick where they’re threatening to close smaller schools and things like that.”

Mitton says she finds some of the things in the government document “ridiculous” and “shocking.”

I would almost think that it wasn’t real because some of the things it mentions are so outlandish,” she adds.

“I’d say they really need to back away from this and take more time to really think through solutions at the table with the universities and the colleges rather than sort of springing this on everyone right before the budget’s tabled on March 17th.”

To read the government document, click here.