HALIFAX--Statistics Canada's annual survey on tuition fees shows that, yet again, students in Nova Scotia will pay the highest fees in the country. On average undergraduate students in Nova Scotia will pay $6,759 in tuition and ancillary fees for the 2008–2009 academic year, almost $1500 above the national average.

"This survey shows that after years of huge tuition fee increases, students and their families need more than the tuition fee freeze and rebate put forward by the provincial government," says Kaley Kennedy, Nova Scotia representative of the Canadian Federation of Students, "The consistent inaction of the federal government in making tuition fee reductions a national priority means that Nova Scotia will continue to see more and more of it's young people flock to other provinces with lower tuition fees, and better job opportunities,"

Released today, the Statistics Canada survey shows that despite the tuition fee freeze and rebates offered by the Nova Scotia government, on average tuition and ancillary fees across the province have only gone down $5 in the past year.

Last week, the Canadian Federation of Students released the Political Party Report Card to inform students and their families about the post-secondary education platform of mainstream pan-Canadian political parties. Three of the four parties graded received failing grades in the category of tuition fees. Only the New Democratic Party pledged to engage the provinces with long-term funding to protect families from tuition fee increases.

"Students and their families need to be vocal in this election, that we will no longer stand for Tory policies that see big business prosper out west, while Nova Scotia students and their families struggle to get by." continued Kennedy.