Plea to York's MPs over university tuition fees hike vote (From York Press)

Plea to York's MPs over university tuition fees hike vote

8:52am Monday 29th November 2010 in News By Nicola Fifield , Senior reporter

LABOUR councillors are calling on York’s two MPs to vote against the proposed hike in tuition fees for university students.

City of York Council’s Labour group has submitted a motion calling on the council’s chief executive, Kersten England, to write to MPs Hugh Bayley and Julian Sturdy asking them to vote against lifting the tuition fees cap.

The motion also suggests Ms England should invite staff and student representatives from York College, Askham Bryan College, York St John University and the University of York to an open meeting to discuss future access to post-16 education.

The move has been proposed by the leader of York’s Labour group, Coun James Alexander, who said: “Nick Clegg has betrayed students by scrapping Education Maintenance Allowance, reducing university places and tripling fees despite previous promises and York Labour wants to do all it can to stop any increase.”

Leigh Hankinson, president of the Students’ Union at York St John University, said: “If the tuition fees cap was to be raised then this would be detrimental not only to York St John University but to the city itself, both economically and socially.

“Students bring a lot of wealth to York and the support we give back to the community in such things as volunteering hours and money raised through York St John University students for local charities such as SNAPPY would be lost through the lack of students applying to university for the fear of debt.

“Trebling the cost of education and putting the total cost on to the student is completely unfair. If they can bail out banks to the tune of over £100 billion, why can’t a couple of billion be found for the institutions that act as pillars of the community and provide billions for the economy. It’s ridiculous.”

The motion will be discussed by councillors at the next full council meeting on December 9.