
Ontario’s “student choice initiative” is a classic Doug Ford 1.0 policy, introduced last January when Ford and his team still thought it was wise to take on all comers in their rush to transform pretty much every aspect of the Ontario public sector.
The policy allows Ontario college and university students to opt out of non-essential services, such as campus newspapers and radio stations, food banks, clubs and marching bands. The vast majority of what students pay for is sacrosanct, things like athletics, health and campus safety
Student leaders are naturally upset about the prospect of losing financial backing for their favourite clubs and causes, and the Canadian Federation of Students is trying to block the change in court. It is of particular importance to the federation, which is losing its automatic payment from each student.
Politically, this is a curious policy. It doesn’t save the cash-strapped government any money and it feeds the narrative that Ford doesn’t like either students or education. He added to that perception when he said in a fundraising letter, “I think we know what kind of crazy Marxist nonsense student unions get up to.” He then claimed he had fixed it by making student union fees optional.
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See Also:
(1) #RingOfFire (#RoF) News – September 12, 2019
(2) Court halts Ontario cannabis store licensing until judicial review takes place
(3) Ford government restructuring Ontario’s health ministry
(4) Doug Ford dodges questions about Andrew Scheer by sneaking past media into cabinet meeting
(5) Taxing wealth isn’t easy. Taxing real estate, on the other hand …