VANCOUVER--Students are encouraged with the New Democratic Party's newly announced commitments to restoring BC's student grant program and increase funding to universities and colleges, but the NDP's plan to maintain tuition fees at 2009 levels after eight consecutive years of tuition fee increases is drawing criticism.

"The NDP plan could make BC's universities and colleges more affordable," said Shamus Reid, Chairperson for the Canadian Federation of Students-British Columbia. "Students in BC have been without a grants program for five years, leaving many students drowning in debt."

The NDP's platform also includes a four-year freeze on tuition fees, a move that students say does not go nearly far enough.

"The NDP caucus protested tuition fee hikes each year in opposition. Yet by only committing to a tuition fee freeze, the NDP is signing off on every tuition fee increase made in the last eight years," said Reid. "Tuition fees have doubled since the NDP left office in 2001. Low and middle-income families need tuition fee relief."

In addition to restoring BC's grants program, the NDP election platform pledges to restore funding cuts made by Premier Gordon Campbell and reduce the provincial student loan interest rate by 1.25%. In total the NDP has committed to an investment of an additional $175 million over three years in post-secondary education. The platform also commits to a rollback of transit fares and to increase the minimum wage to $10 per hour.

The Canadian Federation of Students-BC will be mobilizing students during the provincial election to make their voices heard. On March 31, CFS-BC launched www.VoteEducation.ca, an online resource for students and their families. A detailed analysis of the NDP platform will be available on the website after the weekend.

The Canadian Federation of Students�British Columbia is BC's provincial students' organization, representing 150,000 university and college students at all levels of post-secondary education in BC. It is a non-partisan organization affiliated with Canada's largest national student organization, the Canadian Federation of Students.