London Socialist Historians Group
4th November
Contact Dr Keith Flett 07803 167266
Historians say increasing University tuition fees ignores Labour’s history
The London Socialist Historians Group, which organises the socialist history seminar at the Institute of Historical Research, University of London, has said that the decision to raise University tuition fees to £9,535 from September 2024 goes against Labour’s history on access to higher education.
The historians say that the Government does deserve credit for addressing the financial crisis of Universities which Tory Government did nothing about. However even with an increase in the maintenance grant, higher fees will put off students from a poorer and working class background from going to University
The 1959 Tory Government commissioned the 1963 Robbins Report into higher education. It did not act on it, but the 1964 Labour Government did creating a wave of new Polytechnics, now Universities, creating significant new opportunities for people to go into higher education. Fees were not charged, and modest maintenance grants provided.
LSHG Convenor Dr Keith Flett said, education should be a right not a privilege. There is a funding crisis in higher education largely created by the previous Governments back at least to 2010. Labour’s tradition is to promote access for working people to higher education and higher fees is going the wrong way.
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