It's the Con Dem coalition letting down English students, not the Scots

The ministerial statement on higher education has come and gone  - outlining six different options on the future funding of universities and colleges in Scotland. But the BBC Scotland news site is still running its story from this morning about English students paying more to study in Scotland. Contrast this with the STV website which has covered the debate and runs a story headlined Tuition fees off the agenda for Scottish Students. Whoever at the BBC made the editorial decision to run so big with this line needs to be asked the question: "Do you really think this is what your readers in Scotland are most concerned about regarding higher education?" It's pretty obvious that whoever made this decision answers to an editor in London whose only interest in Scotland and education is how it affects people in England. Do you think Scottish parents would be happy that their money is used to pay the fees of wealthy English students such as Kate Middleton, who studied St Andrews (pictured)The Daily Mail will almost certainly follow the same agenda, along with other English newspaper which fail to understand how devolution works. Fine company for the BBC in Scotland. As I mentioned yesterday, the BBC Scotland news site is to appoint an editor called Tom Connor, who was once censured for offering media training to Labour candidates. Labour support tuition fees for all students, unlike the SNP which wants to provide free tuition for all the students for whom it has a responsibility. Here is  The Green Paper the education secretary Michael Russell presented to parliament.

This is not a matter of ant-English discrimination. It's about which government funds which student. You don't need a degree to understand that. Here goes: 

The Scottish government is financed through a block grant from London, which returns to us a tiny percentage of the taxes Scotland sends to the Treasury.

That block grant is supposed to fund services in Scotland, including education.

Hence Scottish government funds can only cover the education of Scottish domiciled students (whatever the ethnic/cultural background)

English students are (supposed to be) funded by Westminster.

The Con Dem coalition in Westminster has decided to stop supporting students from England by making them pay almost the full cost of their tuition fees.

If the Scottish government find a way to make education free to their students, it follows that its universities could be overwhelmed by applications from well-qualified English school levers seeking to avoid fees.

Because England has ten times the population of Scotland, this could result in very few Scottish students getting into Scottish universities. See concerns about this expressed by Scottish parent and commentator Kenny Farquharson

We cannot have a situation where Scottish money intended to fund the education of Scots is used to fund the education of English people denied support by their own government.

It's the Con Dem government who have let down English students, not the Scots.

We'd love things to be different. If we have full control over our own money, and not just the tiny proportion given back to us by London then perhaps things would be different. Unfortunately the Tory Scotland Bill, backed by the Lib Dems and Labour will not do that. It will in fact cut Scotland's money even further.

 

 

 

 

 

Comments

[oneill]

"Do you think Scottish parents would be happy that their money is used to pay the fees of wealthy English students such as Kate Middleton, who studied St Andrews (pictured)"

The implication being that all English students wishing to study in Scotland are automatically in the same wealth bracket as Ms Middleton?

[el el]

The playground. To suit their spoiling agenda.

[Alastair]

That Middleton girl in the picture has clearly been starving herself to save up the money for her fees.

[CWH]

And Scottish Students who study in England will pay the £9000. Perhaps something to bear in mind.

Clearly there is much to debate and all the pros and cons to be fully aired as well as the anomalies that are likely to arise from each of the proposals. The question is: Do we have opposition politicians capable of informing that debate in a mature manner or is it going to be the politics of the playground?

[Mr Angry]

As usual Joan a well written article.

One interesting thing on the BBC website story:

The article on the Green paper for university fees has comments attached from around the UK (Mostly England) they seem to raise the old chestnut of subsidies etc.

Now I had a quick look and this is the ONLY news item on the news website that has any commnets from the public attached!

Most interesting

[Hamish Scott]

Thanks for that Joan - so well put.

[wee folding bike]

And the lead piece on Reporting Cats up a Tree yesterday was that Scottish students might be charged.

Apparently it was an option in the paper so they weren't exactly lying but they weren't completely telling the truth either.