The Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT) welcomes the following investments in post-secondary education, training and research in the 2026 Spring Economic Update:
- funding to recruit, train and hire 80,000 to 100,000 new Red Seal skilled trades workers by 2030-2031
- renewed support for the College and Community Innovation (CCI) research program
- the previously announced one-year extension of the maximum Canada Student Grant at $4,200
However, these measures, like those in Budget 2025, do not address decades-long public underfunding nor the sudden financial pressures facing many public colleges and universities since the federal international student cap was imposed. Since December 2025, at least 14,000 post-secondary jobs have been lost, hiring freezes are rampant, and over 600 programs have been cut.
While apprenticeship investments are welcome, they are insufficient on their own. Seventy-five per cent of apprenticeships rely on public colleges, which have been hit hard by program cuts.
The slow rollout of previously announced increases to basic, investigator-led research funding undermines today’s announcement of renewed funding for applied research.
“The federal government is investing to attract top global talent while institutions scale back capacity at home,” said David Robinson, executive director of CAUT. “It is allowing basic research funding to lag.”
Amidst an affordability and household debt crisis, the Spring Economic Update was silent on making Canada Student Grant increases permanent or expanding the grant to approach average undergraduate tuition of $8,000.
“The federal government must work with provinces and territories on a coordinated response to strengthen Canada’s public post-secondary sector,” said Robinson. “This includes predictable, multi-year increased student support, stabilization funding for institutions, and accelerated investments in investigator-led research to support both discovery and applied innovation over the long term.”
