TORONTO, ON, March 26, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The Canadian Federation of Students-Ontario is disappointed but not surprised by the deprioritization of education in the 2026 Ontario Budget tabled on March 26. It is abundantly clear — this government remains out of touch with the needs of students, workers, and the broader public sector.
Sustainability within post-secondary remains a pressing issue. By this government’s own admission, Ontario’s post-secondary education sector is currently in crisis and yet, the funding promised only amounts to $1.6 billion per year over four years, which falls drastically short of the current needs for the sector. Students will not congratulate this government for a bare minimum investment when it is their responsibility to fund the sector, a responsibility they continue to fail to meet. The announcement of $6.4 billion in new operating funding still leaves Ontario in last place for per-student funding and comes on the heels of detrimental changes to OSAP.
“It is difficult to highlight this ‘historic investment’ in post-secondary when the budget clearly shows that the Ontario government will prioritize everything except well-funded public services, especially post-secondary education,” said Omar Mousa, CFS-Ontario National Executive Representative. “This budget leaves students asking; where is the funding and where is the funding for OSAP grants?”
OSAP remains underbudgeted for another year – leaving students to finance their own education whilst paying the most expensive tuition fees in the country. Despite mass opposition to the OSAP changes and tuition fee increases, this provincial government is moving full speed-ahead with its plan to exacerbate student debt for the current and next generation of college and university students. The Ford government has deprioritized OSAP since 2018, and yet, this government claims that the recent changes were necessary for the sustainability of the sector. This inconsistency has only thrust students’ into further uncertainty.
“Minister Quinn has a choice; he can choose to listen to the thousands of students across the province who have expressed their opposition and reverse the changes to OSAP and tuition fee increase, or he can continue to defund and privatize our education system.” said Cyrielle Ngeleka, Chairperson of the CFS-Ontario. “If he chooses the latter, he is abandoning 800,000 students for the interests of the corporate sector.”
