OTTAWA--Post-secondary education becomes more affordable for Canadians under the 2011 Alternative Federal Budget (AFB) released today in advance of the federal budget."Making education more affordable is a priority for Canadians," said Roxanne Dubois, spokesperson for the Canadian Federation of Students. "The Alternative Federal Budget shows that investing in post-secondary education is not only an option but a necessity to thrive in the twenty-first century."

The AFB is produced by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives and its member organizations. It uses the federal government's current fiscal framework to construct a budget that addresses the true priorities of Canadians including making education more affordable.

The AFB would create a post-secondary education act accompanied by a dedicated cash transfer with funding allocated to:
• immediately restore per-capita funding to 1992 levels;
• reduce tuition fees to 1992 levels over three years;
• eliminate deferred maintenance at Canada's colleges and universities over five years.

The AFB also proposes increasing funding for access to education for aboriginal learners and doubles the number of Canada Graduate Scholarships.

The AFB presents a comprehensive plan to create jobs, protect public programs, and reduce income inequality. Investments in post-secondary education constitute one of the most important investments needed to build towards a full economic recovery.

The AFB can be downloaded from www.cfs-fcee.ca or www.policyalternatives.ca.

The Canadian Federation of Students has been involved in the AFB project for several years.

The Canadian Federation of Students is Canada's largest student organization, uniting more that one-half million students in all ten provinces. The Canadian Federation of Students and its predecessor organizations have represented students in Canada since 1927.