Mike makes pledge on tuition fees

10.57.00am GMT Tue 1st Dec 2009

With student poverty and debt levels soaring Weston-super-Mare's Liberal Democrat Parliamentary Candidate Mike Bell has signed a pledge to voters ahead of the forthcoming general election that he will vote against any increase in fees in the next parliament.

He has backed a campaign by the National Union of Students which is pressing for MPs and Prospective MPs to commit to opposing more tuition and top up fee hikes.

A review started by the Labour Government in London could mean higher fees for local students at universities in Bristol and Bath and those studying away from home.

Mike Bell said: "Students and recent graduates are still suffering the consequences of the decision of Labour MPs to vote to introduce top up fees in 2004 despite a pledge in the 2001 Labour manifesto not to do so. I remain opposed to student tuition fees and I am happy to pledge to oppose plans to increase them if the Labour Government's Review puts such a proposal forward.

"Tuition fees discourage people from entering higher education and in a year when both graduate unemployment and debt has increased it is a sick joke for Labour Ministers to suggest that students can afford to pay even higher fees."

The Liberal Democrat Shadow Minister for Universities & Skills Stephen Williams MP added:"This review is nothing but a conspiracy between Labour and the Tories designed to keep plans to hike up tuition fees off the agenda until after the General Election. Mandelson has shown he will do whatever it takes to shut out any debate on the future of tuition fees, either in Parliament or the country. The Liberal Democrats want to scrap tuition fees and will fight any attempt to raise the cap."

Commenting at the lunch of the NUS Campaign NUS President Wes Streeting said: "NUS believes that a university education should be free at the point of use, with graduates giving back to the system according to how much they earn. This would give universities double the amount of funding they currently receive, while allowing the children of poorer families to go to university without the fear of debt. It would also prevent the emergence of a market in higher education, where only the rich could afford to attend our most prestigious universities."

On 15 November a YouGov poll commissioned by pressure group Compass revealed that only 12% of the public think the review should even consider increasing fees, while a majority believes that it should look at alternatives to fees.