THE National Union of Students’ verdict on PM May’s review into post-18 education and funding is that ‘she is choosing to move the deckchairs around a ship she already acknowledges to be sinking.’
The NUS continues: ‘To truly make education fair and accessible, the government must acknowledge that the education system is completely broken and therefore keep all options for change on the table.’
The NUS advocates that for ‘fairness and accessibility to be achieved’ means ‘to pull the system down and start again with a completely open mind.’ It goes on: ‘It is concerning that further investment appears to already have been ruled out and the Education Minister has suggested that institutions will not be forced to make courses more affordable.
‘This limits the review to a highly restricted remit, yet leaves the door open to the spectre of further competition through, for example, variable fees, which will likely only damage the sector in the long run.’ The NUS adds: ‘Support for students through maintenance grants and other financial support needs to be a fundamental part of the year long review.’
It continues: ‘It is concerning to see no student representation yet and we urge the government to ensure there is meaningful engagement with students and student representatives throughout the process. This review must be totally independent and have student’s interests at its core – only then will it be able to reform the system in a way that benefits learners.’
This of course is nonsense. Of course there is to be no ‘student representation’ and there will be no ‘meaningful engagement’ for the simple reason that the May government is manoeuvring to face the prospect of a crisis general election, in which Labour under Corbyn will have a policy of restoring student grants and abolishing fees and will certainly win the student and youth vote, despite all of the hysterical witch hunting against him that is going on, as the background to the review. In fact, the only solution to the crisis over education, student fees and the repayment of massive student loans is a revolutionary solution.
The facts are that tuition fees in England are second only to the US private university sector. English students pay up to £9,250 a year and will graduate university with an average debt of £50,000, with an average debt for poorer students of £56,000!
The average interest accrued before graduation amounts to £5,400. To add salt to student wounds, a freedom of information (FOI) request by the University and College Union has discovered that 95% of university vice-chancellors are on remuneration committees, or entitled to attend them, and have taken advantage of this and record high student fees to award themselves record salaries!
Last year Bath University was the subject of a damning report into senior pay and governance at the university.
The Higher Education Funding Council for England (Hefce) said oversight of vice-chancellor Prof Glynis Breakwell’s pay, which peaked at £468,000 a year, lacked transparency and that the reputation of the university had been damaged by its handling of the matter.
UCU general secretary, Sally Hunt, has called for all vice-chancellors to be removed from remuneration committees and barred from attending meetings. She said staff and students should be given seats on the committees and all minutes should be made public. However she has been ignored!
The trade unions must now mobilise alongside the students for a general strike that will resolve the crisis over education by bringing down the Tories, abolishing tuition fees, bringing back student grants and bursaries and also abolishing student debt. The way to find the billions required to abolish fees and student debt will be to nationalise the banks and the major industries under workers’ management.
A socialist planned economy, and its development will speedily resolve the crisis in education. It will need millions of graduates of all kinds to develop a socialist economy for the benefit of all workers and young people. This is the only way forward!
