Web of Connections — who profits when Ford decides
Scandal
OSAP Cuts & Post-Secondary Defunding — Two Waves, a COVID Clawback, and "Basket-Weaving Courses"
>$2B
In January 2019, Ford cut OSAP by $670 million — eliminating free tuition for low-income families, dropping 24,000 students from the program, and shifting the system from grants to loans. When the federal government doubled student grants during COVID, Ontario clawed back $400 million instead of passing it to students. The tuition freeze Ford extended repeatedly was never accompanied by restored aid or compensated operating grants — Laurentian University went bankrupt in 2021, the first public university in Canadian history to do so. In February 2026, Ford announced a second wave: grants capped at 25% of OSAP packages (down from 85%), with 75% as loans — and told students choosing the wrong programs to stop picking "basket-weaving courses." Hundreds protested at Queen's Park.
Connections (3)
- Doug Ford
- Merrilee Fullerton
- Robert Haché