The Canadian Federation of Students has unveiled a national student loan debt clock to highlight what it says has been an explosion in student loan debt.

"Paul Martin declared a war on debt 10 years ago, but student loan debt has never been higher," said George Soule, CFS national chairperson."The funding that Prime Minister Martin cut from post-secondary education to pay down the national debt has translated directly into student debt."

According to the federation, total outstanding Canada student loan debt is now more than $10.7 billion and is increasing faster than $1.5 million a day. It will surpass $11 billion next year, more than the provincial debts of Newfoundland and Saskatchewan.

"With the record federal surpluses, the time has never been better for Martin to step up and ensure equality of access to post-secondary education," Soule said. "Canada's students can't afford to wait any longer. The debt clock is ticking."

The debt clock is a digital counter that ticks off $17 every second. It will be displayed in communities across Canada as part of the federation's campaign for a new national student grant program over the coming year.

The government could fund the program, Soule said, by scrapping the failed Millennium Scholarship Foundation and by investing a fraction of the anticipated surplus in post-secondary education transfers to the provinces.