NEWS
MUSIC
SCREEN
Aaron Porter
The Futureheads
Robin Hood
Page 2
Page 16
Exeposé
Page 21
Monday May 24 2010 Week 27 Issue 566
Free and Impartial. Your paper, your views, your voice.
Will the cap come off ?
Charlie Marchant News Editor
THE RUSSELL GROUP, who represent 20 of the top UK universities, have called for the cap on tuition fees to be abolished. With cuts of more than £1 billion over the next three years and further cuts expected, universities are desperate to fill the already huge gaps in their funding. One solution would be to abolish the current £3,225 per year fee cap. Steve Smith, Exeter Vice Chancellor and President of Universities UK, stated in The Guardian that, should the government announce deeper cuts to higher education in its emergency budget, it could prove extremely damaging to the sector. The universities of Oxford and Cambridge have declared their support for the abolition of the fee cap, in light of recent figures which claim they are losing £200 million in subsidising degree courses each year. Cambridge commented that universities should have “greater freedom” to raise the price of degree courses.
“Deeper cuts to higher education could prove extremely damaging” Steve Smith, Vice Chancellor of Exeter University and President of Universities UK However, this would be a black day for students: graduates could face debts of up to £40,000 and many of the brightest students would be deterred from applying to the top universities, with potential annual fees of over £10,000. Exeter University would be one of many such institutions to raise their tuition fees. Richard Stearn, Guild President, warned that, “any rise to the level of tuition fees will severely affect
participation in University in the UK,” and that such an act would, “result in a tiered system of higher education, unfairly discriminating against the less-well off.” The Russell Group of leading universities have further suggested that graduates should be made to repay student loans quicker and at a higher rate of interest. The Group stated that universities may be challenged with a £1.1 billion deficit by the academic year 2012/13 and should address the situation as soon as possible.
“Education is not a commodity” Richard Stearn, Guild President A cap on fees, as well as an increased interest rate on loans, could lead to an elitist system of higher education – something which universities have been fighting against. Mr Stearn was appalled by this news, saying, “The idea that students should have to pay a commercial rate of interest on their loans is outrageous. Education is not a commodity and the fact that this has been suggested to cover the cost of providing the loan just shows how rotten the system really is.” Despite the support from Oxford and Cambridge to abolish the current fees cap, Aaron Porter, President-Elect of the NUS, is campaigning against the potential rise in fees and the rate at which it is already expected for student loans to be paid back. In an interview with Exeposé, Mr Porter stated, “The current fees system means that many people leave University and feel compelled to take on a high paid job, rather than perhaps going into the public or charity sector, because of the debt that hangs around their neck, and the need to pay it back quickly. This would only get worse if the cap were lifted.”
Pressure builds as the Russell Group demands abolition of cap on fees.
Photo: Henry White