The BC Greens are promising to freeze domestic tuition at public post-secondary institutions and introduce new protections for residential leaseholders as part of two policy announcements made Wednesday.
The commitments, announced just days before the October 24 provincial election, focus on affordability challenges facing students and residents living under long-term leasehold agreements.
Andrew Appleton, the BC Greens candidate for Oak Bay-Gordon Head, unveiled the party's post-secondary education plan, which includes freezing domestic tuition and mandatory fees at public institutions while capping annual increases for international students at inflation.
“For too long, our post-secondary institutions have relied on squeezing international and domestic students like a cash cow to fill their funding gaps,” Appleton said, criticizing the provincial government's approach to funding higher education.
The Greens are also proposing a system-wide review of BC's post-secondary funding model, with additional provincial funding under consideration.
The review would examine the roles of all 25 public post-secondary institutions, how funding is distributed, regional access to education, research, trades training, and transfers between institutions.
According to the party, international student tuition accounted for approximately 18% of revenue across the public post-secondary system until 2024, reaching as high as 40% at some institutions.
The Greens say federal changes to international study permits are expected to reduce tuition revenue across the sector by roughly $300 million annually, contributing to hiring freezes, layoffs, and program cuts.
“Every time tuition goes up, another young person decides college or university isn’t for them. Not because they aren’t capable, but because they can’t afford it,” Appleton said.
The party is also pledging to expand below-market student housing on public campus land, including family-sized units for students with children.
New student housing built with provincial funding would be required to remain affordable over the long term.
In a separate announcement Wednesday, BC Greens leader Emily Lowan pledged to introduce legislation protecting residents living in housing governed by long-term leasehold contracts, often referred to as 99-year leases.
An estimated 2,500 homes in BC, primarily in Victoria and Vancouver's West End, are held under these arrangements.
Unlike traditional renters or strata owners, residential leaseholders fall outside the Residential Tenancy Act and Strata Property Act, leaving them without the same protections against fee increases and limited options for resolving disputes.
“People living in housing subject to long-term leasehold contracts aren’t protected by the law, and corporate landlords are taking full advantage, squeezing exorbitant profits out of people’s homes,” Lowan said.
The Greens are proposing caps on fee increases and special assessments, requirements for audited financial statements, and greater transparency around maintenance and capital improvement costs.
The proposed legislation would also give residents the right to form leaseholders' associations and access dispute resolution through the Civil Resolution Tribunal or Residential Tenancy Branch rather than pursuing cases in BC Supreme Court.
The announcements come as British Columbians prepare to head to the polls on Saturday, October 24, with the BC Greens outlining their policy commitments ahead of election day.
