JDC Coverage 3
Apple and Google’s Rivalry 4
Miss Chinese International Pageant 8
Kim Jong Il Dies 9
The Bull & Bear McGill’s Business Voice Since 2003
A publication of the
bullandbear.ca
January 2012 • Volume 9 • Issue 5
Happy New Year!
MUS Launches Elections Elections for the 2012-13 academic year will implement new features to increase voter turnout Hugo Margoc News Editor
T
he MUS elections for the academic year of 2012/13 will commence on January 13th with the Election Information Session to be held at 4 pm in the Bronfman basement. This year’s elections will utilize newly implemented features such as candidate debates, with the aim of increasing student involvement in the election process. The Bull & Bear spoke with current MUS President Dave Fortin to obtain an overview of the election process. The Schedule and Modus The election process is organized by the Chief Returning Officer Clement Chuong, along with the Deputy Returning Officers, who are independent from the MUS to provide for more transparency, and to prevent possible manipulation of the election by MUS board members. Voter anonymity is guaranteed by the use of the Salamander Voting System, the voting software used by the Student Society of McGill University, which eliminates the need to count and print ballots. Current VP of Internal Affairs, Shehryar Rajani, to whom Officer Chuong reports, oversees the event and communicates the process to the MUS. Continued on Page 3 CHECK US OUT ONLINE TO STAY UP-TO-DATE WITH THE LATEST NEWS AND EVENTS! @MUSBullAndBear
McGill’s Deficit Rises Expenditures outpace revenues in growth
growing reporting demands from the Quebec and the federal governments.”
David Lin Executive Editor
McGill is entering the New Year with a projected deficit of $6 million (compared to a surplus of $5 million in 2011), accounting to an accumulated deficit of $104.2 million. Several events during the 2010-2011 fiscal year contributed to the University’s tightening cash flow, including a diversion of $4.8 million from the operating budget to compensate for increased pension liabilities, an increase in the research budget from $3.9 million in 2011 to $4.4 million for 2012, and the urgent “deferred maintenance interventions” which saw a drawdown of operating funds to cover spending on renovation projects. Furthermore, McGill’s Treasurer anticipates that the cost of borrowing will increase from the average rate of 1.2% to at least 2.15% in 2012. Budgeting Objectives The University is working under difficult financial circumstances, citing rising administrative costs, salaries and tuition fees that are below the national average as the main reasons for this budget gap. To reduce costs, the University intends to lower the budget allocated for academic and administrative staff this year by 2.5%. In a report published by the Provost in May 2011, the budgeting objectives for 2012 are described as being “transitional” to fulfilling the Strategic Reframing Initiative (SRI), a framework launched in 2010 for the purpose of improving “key areas in the University’s administrative practices.” Under SRI, the following areas have been addressed as the primary areas of concern for the administration: cost efficiencies, enrolment mix,
Financial Performance McGill’s total expenses represented 92% of its total revenues in 2011, compared to 99% in 2010, and 101% in 2009. Salaries account for an average of 65% of total expenses, with payments to academic staff representing the largest portion of salary expenses at 39%, followed by payments to administrative and support staff at 29% of total salaries. Through SRI, the University projects that their budget will be balanced by 2014.
Illustration by Michael Horowitz
McGill’s financial future is met with a significant amount of turbulence
philanthropy, transformative research and innovation, and performance enhancement. According to the Provost’s report, McGill’s budget has five top priorities: “increasing compensation costs required to attract and retain talented faculty and staff, providing financial aid and support to our growing stu-
dent population, continuing to attend to our documented strategic priorities (including but not limited to such, areas as Green Chemistry, Broadband, Pain, Neuroscience, Social and Public Policy, Languages, literatures, and cultures,, and Genomics), maintaining adequately our physical infrastructure, and
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Funding Sources The Ministère de l’Éducation, du Loisir et du Sport (MELS) is projected to provide 49% of McGill’s 2012 operating revenues, with tuition and fees accounting for 28%. The rest of the funding comes from funding from the federal government, ancillary services, endowment funds and gifts, and “other revenues,” which include the sales of goods and services, services to the community, and student services. The Quebec Government itself, McGill’s largest funding source, is also burdened with a deficit measured at $4.3 billion (1.3% of nominal GDP) as of 2009 – 2010 and is expected to only return to fiscal balance by 2013 – 2014 through aggressive cuts in public service payments and increases in Hydro-Québec rates. Despite this planned expenditure management, the Quebec Government plans to begin raising tuition fees starting in Fall 2012 by $325 per year, with a 35% holdback (reduction of the operating grant) for student aid.
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