Premier Doug Ford had choice words for students expressing concerns over recent cuts to the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) Tuesday, telling them to “not pick basket-weaving courses” and to invest in education that gives people in-demand jobs.
Speaking to reporters at Queen’s Park, Ford said he received “thousands of calls” from students over the long weekend, who expressed concerns about the province cutting the amount of grant money students can receive through OSAP.
“I mentioned to the students, you have to invest in your future, into in-demand jobs,” he said.
“You’re picking basket-weaving courses, and there’s not too many baskets being sold out there.”
I’m no fan of ford but i don’t mind OSAP being prioritized for genuine in demand nation building career opportunities. Programs to get people into electrical engineering or other careers that will support our future could be beneficial. I doubt thats actually how this will all go down but as a concept prioritizing certain degrees over others with public funding isn’t the worst thing, especially if it can help build a stronger economy to open funding for more variety of programs later down the line.
The problem with Ford’s rant and the idiot basket weaver media who cover him is that because of a decade of underfunding, most of the programs he mentioned do not have space for a fraction of those applying. It is very difficult to get into engineering or health care programs at a good career level, not some bullshit Humber college program with the same name.
Sounds like you’re in favor of central planning
I view it similar to rebates and tax breaks. Like nudging people towards EVs with rebates or relieving the cost of having kids by offering tax breaks. The government sees the shift they want (electrification, increased birth rate) and the people have financial or other incentives to make those choices.