TORONTO — Colleges and Universities Minister Nolan Quinn said Tuesday he will not release the KPMG forensic audit examining student aid payments to private career colleges, citing the need to protect ongoing investigations.Speaking to reporters after Question Period, Quinn was asked whether the public would see the results of the taxpayer-funded review. “No, I will not,” he replied. He said the ministry wants the audit finished “thoroughly and without distractions” and that Ontarians will see action once it is complete, including possible decisions not to renew some schools’ ability to deliver career-college training.Quinn said the ministry has conducted more than 3,200 inspections of individual student aid accounts since 2020. He noted that concerns about a sharp rise in applications at a small number of schools became clear in late 2024 and 2025, after Career Colleges Ontario and the federal government also flagged issues. The province has paused student aid payments to all private post-secondary institutions until at least early 2027 and has referred the matter to the Ontario Provincial Police..NDP Leader Marit Stiles rejected the secrecy argument. She said Ontarians paid for the KPMG work and have a right to know what was found. “The people of Ontario deserve to know how their taxpayer dollars are spent and what is being found,” she said. Stiles also pointed to donations from private career-college owners to the Progressive Conservatives and said previous ministers had “opened the floodgates” while the government later looked the other way.Liberal MPP Lee Fairclough echoed the call for transparency. She noted that government members voted against a motion the previous day that would have asked the Auditor General to review the program. Fairclough said the KPMG report was paid for with public funds and should be made available so Ontarians can see where the money went. She and other opposition members also highlighted the impact of the blanket freeze on students who had nothing to do with any alleged misuse of funds and are now struggling to pay rent and other bills.
