A horse in the race

Analysis

After making a few posts, I've realized that many readers might not be aware of who the slates are this year. It's one thing to review their websites or read their posters (with gems like "increase government funding" - whomever can do that has a great-paying job with the university administration waiting for them), but what do they really stand for?

My fellow election blogger and esteemed Manitoban editor Tessa writes in this week's print issue that "no candidates are allied with the incumbents". This is true insofar as no incumbent has publicly endorsed a slate, but we can infer some information from the candidates' own words.

For example, on the issue of the tuition freeze, always a good barometer of political leanings, let's compare and contrast answers to the Manitoban's always-insightful UMSU candidate questionnaire.

Let's begin with the colourful Pierce Cairns of the Regressive Conservative slate:

It’s perhaps had its use in the past, but we’re hoping to not only thaw the tuition freeze, but it’s going to be a tuition forest fire here. [...] I’m hoping by removing the tuition freeze that the university can start to garner some of the funding needed to provide better equipment and better education, and I know several faculties including my own, over the last several years, have voted to raise their own tuition, and that’s got to be saying something.

Here's what Jonny Sopotiuk of Students United had to say:

I think it’s very important that post-secondary education is accessible for all students, regardless of their background, family income. With any tuition fee freeze, I think we need to make it work. There’s obviously infrastruture deficits, classrooms, labs, not having enough teaching assistants is something that’s failing the students. So working with the tuition freeze, I think we we absolutely need to work on lobbying the government, getting more funding through federal government and provincial government, so that our education is extremely high-quality, but working with the freeze.

Finally, here's Troy Unrau, from Clean Slate:

I’m going to take the middle-of-the-road statement on this one. I feel very good that the tuition fee freeze had a very good motivation when it was conceived.

However, you cannot freeze tuition forever. If you freeze it forever, and don’t take into account inflation into the picture, eventually there’s going to be a degredation of service [ . . . ] The goal posts have been moved, and we’re losing our abilities to compete with other universities in other centrs. I’m not in favour of a blanket tuition freeze release, however I am in favour of negotiation.

As archaic as the left-right political continuum is, it remains popular and useful for classifying most contemporary political positions, and I would argue that it can be applied here, on arguably the most important issue surrounding post-secondary education today: tuition fees and accessibility.

So here's my admittedly archaic (but useful) classification. From right to left:

• Regressive Conservative: lift the freeze; students will pay more (right-leaning)
• Clean Slate: no blanket freeze; negotiate (middle of the road)
• Students United: keep the freeze; increase government funding (left-leaning)
  

And how do these opinions compare to that of the incumbent UMSU administration? Let's ask Gary Sran himself:

“The University’s disregard for the tuition fee freeze is unacceptable to students....”

"This government is not doing enough to properly fund our colleges and universities [...] While Newfoundland and Labrador – a province with similar economic challenges to Manitoba – has reduced tuition fees by 25% and increased funding to universities and colleges by 45% over three years, our government is short-changing our institutions, and allowing a successful tuition fee freeze policy to be undermined by university administrators."

“If Manitoba Conservative Leader Hugh McFadyen would like to replace the tuition fee freeze with targeted aid for students, he will have to answer to students across the province who benefit from lower tuition fees [...] It would be short-sighted to allow fees to rise, and such a policy would result in higher student debt and reduced accessibility. Targeted assistance for students in need would not neutralise the negative effects of fee increases.”

"But Dana!" you might be thinking. "The tuition freeze, 'tis but one issue!" 'Tis indeed, but it remains an excellent barometer of an individual's politics.

And if you really think that Garry Sran and the other members of the UMSU executive don't have a horse in this race, then I've got a bridge to sell you.