Queen’s Park is bracing for another major protest over the Ford government’s unpopular changes to the Ontario Student Assistant Program on Tuesday — a demonstration that’s being met with fresh warnings that vandalism and threats will not be tolerated.

In February, the Ford government said the province’s OSAP policy was projected to grow to an unsustainable $4.1 billion per year, requiring an overhaul to ensure the program was available for students in the future.

While students were previously entitled to receive a grant for up to 85 per cent of their support payment, the government changed the ratio, meaning students looking for help with education costs will now be forced to pay back 75 per cent of their OSAP loan.

The changes have sparked fierce protests from high school, university and college students who claim the province is burdening students with decades of debt — a hardship, they say, that’s exacerbated by low job prospects for young workers in Ontario.

An initial protest, however, eventually ended in a police confrontation, arrests and left the statue of George Brown vandalized, causing $5,000 in damage.

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In response, Speaker Donna Skelly ordered the rest of the statues at Queen’s Park to be wrapped with a protective tarp and warned the “thousands” of protesters expected on Tuesday to remain peaceful.

“They are more than welcome to attend and to come to Queen’s Park. I am just asking that please, please respect the law, respect the rules that are in place,” Skelly said.

“Don’t harm anybody on the property and don’t damage anything.”

Skelly said while the legislature has an “agreement” with Toronto Police to offer additional security during large-scale demonstrations, she rejected the notion that a police presence might heighten tensions.

“I mean, we’re dealing with adults and you know what the rules are. No one has the right to spit on someone, assault another person or damage property,” Skelly said.

During Question Period, opposition parties accused the government of “piling on” young people and called the Progressive Conservatives to reverse the changes.

“The debt of young people and their families who are trying to get a degree, a diploma or a trade. And that’s because that guy over there decided that he was going to break OSAP,” said interim Liberal leader John Fraser.

Ford defended his government’s position and touted the tuition freeze in 2018.

“When we came into office we knocked 10 per cent off tuition. We kept that tuition down for eight years,” Ford said.

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After the Ford government made sweeping changes to how student loans in Ontario operate, disgruntled students are planning to rally at Queen’s Park on Wednesday.

Students are organizing a “hands off our education” protest at the legislature beginning around 12 p.m., focusing frustration on the province’s decision to allow tuition fee increases and shifting from grants to loans.

“The Ford government’s decision to open the floodgates to tuition increases AND the decimation of OSAP will destroy what’s left of education in Ontario,” a post from the Guelph University students read.

“Enough is enough – it’s time to take to the streets and flex the true power of students in the province.”

Frustration with the changes has been simmering since the Ford government first announced them on Feb. 12, allowing colleges and universities to increase tuition by two per cent a year, offering them more government cash and changing how OSAP works.

The latter change is the one that has attracted the most energy, shifting public funding for students from loans to grants.

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The existing proportion of OSAP was about 85 per cent grants to 15 per cent loans, the government said, but starting this fall, students will receive a maximum of 25 per cent of their OSAP funding as grants.

Premier Doug Ford has said shifting from loans to grants would make students “accountable” for the money they take from the government, referencing alleged misuse of student finance.

“You are taking tax dollars and you have to be held accountable when you take tax dollars,” he said. “It’s not a freebie anymore. Money doesn’t grow on trees.”

The Ministry of Colleges, Universities, Research Excellence and Security insists that, despite the premier’s comments, the move to loans is necessary to ensure the financial stability of the program.

In 2024, they said, there were 862 potential investigations for fraud across all OSAP grants and loans. The figure was 902 for 2025. The ministry would not confirm how many of those reports actually found fraud or the total dollar value of the alleged fraud.

Opposition parties have pushed back against the changes, saying the government is harming people’s prospects for post-secondary education.

The Ontario NDP said its “Save OSAP” campaign had seen 30,000 sign-ups and 30,000 emails sent to the offices of Progressive Conservative MPPs. They said 700 calls had been made during a phone blitz.

The legislative assembly said it had not been told how large the rally would be, and the Canadian Federation of Students did not respond to questions ahead of publication.

The event is expected to run from around 12:30 to 4 p.m.

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Ontario Premier Doug Ford is signalling he will stand firm on his government’s changes to student loans as opposition to a major restructuring of the program grows in the province.

As part of a push to sustain the struggling post-secondary sector, the province will inject new cash into colleges and universities and allow them to raise tuition fees by two per cent a year.

The changes also shifted how OSAP operates, moving away from grants to offer students more loans instead.

The existing proportion of OSAP was about 85 per cent grants to 15 per cent loans, the government said, but starting this fall, students will receive a maximum of 25 per cent of their OSAP funding as grants.

Now, advocates and opponents are pushing the premier to reverse course, accusing him of trying to balance the books on the backs of students.

“Doug Ford has shown that he doesn’t mind a good flip-flop, so we’re going to hand him an opportunity,” Ontario NDP Leader Marit Stiles said.

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“Families that I’m hearing from are furious. Not only is this an attack on students saddling them with massive debt when they least need it … but it is also a hit on our economy.”

The NDP has launched a campaign to “save OSAP,” urging students and families to sign its petition and write to their local MPPs.

“We have been contacted already by thousands of people, thousands of students,” Stiles said. “Even the premier acknowledged he’s getting thousands of calls. No kidding. My phone was lighting up all weekend; I expect every MPP was getting lots of calls.”

Bella Fischer, with the College Student Alliance, said the OSAP changes and hiked tuition fees could put some off college or university by making them pay more for longer.

“They’re putting basically all of the burden onto the students,” she said. “The decisions in life later are going to also be affected because they’re going to have more debt to pay.”

Ford, however, justified the decision at an unrelated event on Wednesday, saying the existing system was “unsustainable” and claiming the government had been “paying for everyone’s education.”

He added, “The most vulnerable are going to be taken care of, that’s clear and simple. It’s going to be 25 per cent — and that puts us in the middle of the pack.”

Ontario Liberal MPP John Fraser said the premier didn’t understand the impact on students.

“He’s out of touch with people’s everyday lives, what families go through to make sure that their kids get an education and are ready for the future,” he said. “They give up a lot.”

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