VICTORIA—While the Campbell Liberal government continues to ignore the problem, New Democrat Advanced Education critic Rob Fleming today introduced a Private Members’ Bill to restore protections for B.C. students enrolled in private colleges.



“For years, we’ve heard countless stories of students who have been ripped off by private career training colleges in British Columbia,” said Fleming. “Students of Kingston and Lansbridge Colleges, owned by B.C. Liberal insider Michael Lo, were sold a false bill of goods for fraudulent degrees and left tens of thousands of dollars in debt without any help from the Campbell government.

“Under pressure from students and the Opposition, Advanced Education Minister Murray Coell promised students he would introduce legislative changes this spring to address this crisis. But the Minister has failed to act on that promise, prompting the NDP to introduce its own legislation to protect students.”

Fleming’s Bill, the Post-Secondary Accountability and Student Protection Act, would restore student protections stripped by the B.C. Liberal government when it deregulated the private college sector, including financial redress for students sold a false bill of goods by private post-secondary institutions. The Bill also mandates the Degree Quality Assessment Board to review all requests for degree-granting status, to ensure that students are not misled by false promises of a “university” degree.

“The B.C. Liberal de-regulation of the private college sector has hurt B.C. students and threatens our reputation for quality post-secondary education,” said Fleming. “Students want change, private college operators want change, and our international partners want change – the consulates of India, China and South Korea have all expressed concern about the fate of their students under the current system.



“It is critical that we work quickly to restore public confidence in private post-secondary training. It’s time for Minister Coell to put B.C. students first and support this Bill,” said Fleming.