Devizes PPC Fiona Hornby Signs Petition Against Rise in Student Fees

104 Prospective Parliamentary Candidates have signed a petition to urge Liberal Democrat MPs to vote against the rise in student fees. The Liberal Democrat PPC for Devizes, Fiona Hornby, explains why she has signed the petition:

"We individually made this pledge publicly. I hope we all believed it was the right thing to do. Some issues go beyond party loyalty and the inbuilt threat that disagreeing will damage our political prospects.

What we said was that it would take us 6 years to remove the fees but that in the mean time we would not agree to any rise in their level. Vince Cable's original statement on the Brown report made it very clear that this was being done in order to cut higher education spending as part of the deficit reduction, as part of smaller government. The effect is the privatisation of higher education.

The State is saying that it is not willing to pay for education post 18. The funding arrangements mean that the state is saying it sees no value to the state in education post 18 in subjects that do not have an immediate value to the state such as medicine. I for one cannot agree to this point of view and I see this as a slippery slope. All education benefits all of us. Well educated individuals fulfilling their potential give more to society in many ways and cost less.

If our elected MP's do not vote against the rise in tuition fees they are making liars of us all and more importantly taking the wrong decision."

The 104 PPCs are not alone in their thinking. Tim Farron, recently elected as President of the Liberal Democrats has vowed to fight against the proposed rise in student fees.