Local students could face £7,000 tuition fees

2.21.09pm BST (GMT +0100) Tue 20th Oct 2009

There is now less than eight months to save a new generation of young people from huge increases in university tuition fees, according to Brecon & Radnorshire's Welsh Liberal Democrat MP, Roger Williams.

He was speaking after the Conservatives suggested they will increase tuition fees to £7,000 if they take power at the next General Election, which has to be held by next June.

That will see tuition fees for undergraduates more than double. Currently there is a cap of £3,300 in England and Wales.

Peter Mandelson has already suggested that Labour will allow universities to charge more than at present if re-elected - though the party is too scared to push through the changes it wants before next June.

Only the Liberal Democrats will scrap tuition fees. The party believes university education should be free and everyone who has the ability should be able to go - and not be put off by the cost.

Roger Williams said: "I look around Brecon & Radnorshire and I see people return from university with no job and a bank balance tens of thousands of pounds in the red. What sort of start is that to a young person's working life and what message does it send about how we value them?"

"Both the Tories and Labour are showing their true colours. They don't care about young people - they just want to saddle them with staggering amounts of debt."

"The choice is clear - support politicians who will saddle a generation of youngsters with debt or support the Liberal Democrat campaign to make higher education free again, giving young people the best possible start in life," concluded Mr. Williams.