Heads in the sand

Funny how Progressive Conservative members of the Ontario legislature from Milton, Brampton and Markham were happy to cheer on the decision to locate satellite university campuses in their communities.

But that was then — before June’s provincial election, when the Wynne government was in power and was announcing that new campuses would be funded in these three rapidly growing cities. It seemed like a great idea to all local representatives, including the PCs.

But now that the Conservatives own Queen’s Park, those campuses have apparently gone from being wise investments in post-secondary education and underserved communities to being just so much needless spending.

How else to interpret the Ford government’s abrupt decision to axe all three expansions because of what it calls the province’s “new fiscal restraints,” saving a total of $305 million?

The Conservatives never mentioned cutting these campuses during the election campaign. On the contrary. Doug Ford made it sound as if any cuts would be painless trims to “fat” in the system.

But cancelling these projects is a real blow to the future of all three communities, and a setback for educational opportunities in communities that aren’t well-served by post-secondary institutions.

Brampton, for example, has 600,000 people and is growing so fast that it’s forecast to hit a million in little more than 20 years. It’s the biggest city in the country without a university, and a satellite campus of Ryerson University and Sheridan College would have been a big step toward filling the education gap there.

This is a short-sighted decision that will hurt development in the communities affected and damage attempts to make sure Ontario’s workforce is as well-trained as it could be. The Ford government should take the long view and think again.