Report from the Westminster Hall debate on participation in higher education

Today, during a Westminster Hall debate on participation in higher education, David Lammy demanded that the government reconsider their decision to increase tuition fees to £9,000.

David Lammy said:

“How will trebling fees encourage the sons and daughters of nurses and dinner ladies to achieve what their parents never had the chance to do?

“The government thinks it is acceptable for the son of a social worker to turn down a place at Oxford to study at Oxford Brookes just because the latter is cheaper

“For the Labour Party, raising access and ambition is nothing short of a moral crusade. Access was widened not by chance, but because we wanted it to happen.

“In this government’s hands, Higher Education is not about raising ambition, but consolidating privilege.

“The government has already outlined how disadvantaged pupils in primary and secondary education will receive extra funding through the pupil premium – why shouldn’t the same apply in Higher Education in the form of a ‘student premium’?

“This would give Universities real incentives to take on disadvantaged students unlike the shallow access agreements outlined by the government today.”

The debate was secured by David Lammy and was attended by dozens of Labour and Conservative Members of Parliament.

However, no single Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament turned up at any point during the debate.