European student solidarity over UK cuts

For live coverage of the DEMOLITION protest, be sure to follow @EdJournal from 10am. 

European student unions from Austria and Belgium to Georgia and the Ukraine have come out in support of the DEMOLITION march in London later today.

The Journal has learned that EUSA and NUS share concerns with their European counterparts for the future of education in the UK, in the wake of major spending cuts and £9,000 per year tuition fee proposals.  

The Netherlands Interstedelijk Studenten Overleg (ISO) and the Spanish Coordinadora de Representantes de Estudiantes de Universidades Pcas (CREUP) are among some of the 40 unions from the continent who unanimously agreed at last weeks’ board meeting of the European Student’s Union (ESU) to support the march.

Bert Vandenkendelaere, Chair of European Students' Union (ESU) commented: “I am coming to London, to march alongside thousands of students from the UK and beyond, to fight these savage cuts and hazardous proposals.

"It is high time to realize that the situation is no longer acceptable, and is no longer accepted by the students. It is high time that the decision makers in the United Kingdom start working on a more sustainable, fair and equitable educational system, which provides high quality education without any financial or other discriminatory threshold.”

If sufficient funding is not sourced, Scotland's higher education system is in danger with students from disadvantaged backgrounds predicted to lose out.

Liz Rawlings, EUSA President, told The Journal: “With universities in England allowed to charge fees of £7000 or more per year for their courses this will create a huge funding gap and Scottish institutions will struggle to compete with their wealthier counterparts elsewhere in the UK…the brightest and best English students will all apply to Scottish institutions to save £5000 a year; this means that Scottish students will be competing with thousands more students for a place at university.”

The Liberal Democrats have received particular criticism for their u-turn on an election pledge to abolish plans to raise tuition fees in England. Aaron Porter, NUS president, has said in an open letter to Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg: “[He] has failed to give a proper answer to students.

"Thousands of students, many of whom will have voted for Liberal Democrats because of their pledge, will be taking to the streets on Wednesday and this is a perfect opportunity for Nick Clegg to explain himself and answer the many questions students have to ask him."

Ms Rawlings went further, commenting that the final fallout of the cuts may not be felt until the Scottish elections in May next year: “We must tell the government that education should be accessible to all and based on academic potential rather than ability to pay.

"We must lobby the political parties to search for a progressive alternative to higher education funding which is fair and doesn't deter poorer students from applying to university. 

”The Liberal Democrats here in Scotland could suffer in the Scottish Parliament elections. All Liberal Democrat MPs signed the NUS pledge promising to vote against tuition fees. If fees are introduced in England because of Liberal Democrat support, it is very possible that students will punish them at the Holyrood elections.”

The Browne report published on 11 October has been met with anger from students from all across the UK. It modeled 80 per cent cuts in education and recommended that there should be no limit to fees charged by universities in England.

The Scottish Government will publish a Green Paper by the end of the year laying out the options available for addressing the funding gap.

The Scottish Government made clear that it will not reintroduce tuition fees. The Cabinet Minister for Education, Michael Russell, said: "What we won’t do is have upfront tuition fees.”

For live coverage of the DEMOLITION protest via Twitter, be sure to follow @EdJournal from 10am.