Story from todays Herald, 15 mins ago : sniggers loudly at this story :) Lib Dems target student voters Monday 26 January 2015 Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Willie Rennie has reached out to students, pledging to rebuild a relationship tarnished by the broken pledge on tuition fees. Mr Rennie emphasised his partys record on higher education in Scotland as he sought to win back student support. He is calling for the Scottish Government to raise the threshold for student loan repayment in Scotland to match that in England. In 2012, UK leader and Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg apologised for breaking the Liberal Democrats pre-election pledge to oppose any increase in tuition fees. Mr Clegg was among 27 Lib Dem MPs who later voted in coalition government to allow English universities to charge annual fees of up to £9,000. We made a pledge, we didnt stick to it and for that I am sorry, he said in a video broadcast. Mr Rennie will set out his case in a speech to Liberal Democrat student members at Dundee University today. He said: People often forget that it was the Liberal Democrats that won the battle to abolish tuition fees in Scotland in the face of strong opposition from the Labour Party who had just introduced them across the UK. It was the Liberal Democrats who supported the abolition of the graduate endowment in Scotland with opposition from Labour and the Conservatives. Of course, the debate over tuition fees in England has tarnished our strong relationship with students in Scotland but I am determined to rekindle it. Currently, students in England begin to repay student loans when they earn more than £21,000, compared with a threshold of £16,910 for graduates in Scotland. Mr Rennie said: This means that graduates in England on lower incomes can be almost £400 better off each year. I want the SNP Government to match that threshold. It will make higher education more attractive and rewarding. It continues the Scottish Liberal Democrat record of delivering for students, in contrast with the SNP who took their eye off the ball with their campaign for independence.
Posted on: Mon, 26 Jan 2015 14:04:59 +0000
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