The coalition argued that higher tuition fees for university would allow
for less government funding of education without a loss in the quality
of Britain’s ancient institutions. The increased fees were supposed to
end state funding of universities but instead a massive shortfall in
investment has been created due to the levels of unpaid debt that will
be created. From the capitalists’ point of view the only way that this
can be dealt with is through further cuts to higher education.
The coalition argued that higher
tuition fees for university would allow for less government funding of
education without a loss in the quality of Britain’s ancient
institutions. The increased fees were supposed to end state funding of
universities but instead a massive shortfall in investment has been
created due to the levels of unpaid debt that will be created. From the
capitalists’ point of view the only way that this can be dealt with is
through further cuts to higher education.
The revival of the student movement in reaction to the rising tuition
fees cap was one of the most memorable episodes of 2010, and a pivotal
moment in the continuing revival of the labour movement in Britain as a
whole. To most people the tripling of the tuition fees cap in England
and Wales from £3,290 to £9,000 seemed completely unjustifiable.
Coalition ministers attempted to defend their policy through murmuring
weak excuses in relation to increased bursaries and a “fairer” system
for all.
It is clear that the tripling of fees is indefensible from a moral
standpoint – do young people from working class backgrounds not already
have sufficient barriers to higher education? The question of the
practicality of such measures is one that may require some answers. The
coalition argued that the higher fees would allow for less government
funding of education (in yet another scheme set on forcing the mass of
the population to pay for a deficit caused by the capitalist system and
bankers in the city) without a loss in the quality of Britain’s ancient
institutions. Another recurring point in the debate was the argument
that the situation in Britain wouldn’t be nearly as bad as that in
America, where top colleges can expect to be able to charge students in
the region of $50,000 per year. This example was also used to fuel fears
that Britain may be falling behind academically as American
institutions such as Harvard and Yale have begun to overtake Oxford and
Cambridge in the global university league tables. However, one must ask:
What good are these intellectual powerhouses when they are closed off
to virtually the entire population, being almost solely attended by the
children of both the American and international bourgeoisie?
In a blind attempt to quell some of the fears of the great unwashed,
the coalition stated that in all likelihood most universities would only
double – not triple – fees. They ignorantly proclaimed the new system
to be somehow fairer because students do not having to start paying back
the loan until they’re earning over £21,000. In reality the coalition
was either lying, or they were incredibly short-sighted. Two thirds of
universities are now expected to charge £9,000 per year from 2012 with
the majority of the rest reporting fees of over £8,000. This, despite
the coalition “estimating” that less than 10% of universities in England
and Wales would elect to charge over £7,500 (source: Daily Telegraph).
No reason appears to be given for this miscalculation. Whilst to
everyone else it seemed obvious that universities would wish to demand
the greatest amount of money possible in order to increase their
research power (and hence profitability), it seems that the coalition
relied on blind hope in order to reassure themselves that their plans
were feasible.
The issue that arises from the high proportion of universities
wishing to charge the maximum level of fees is that student loans are
funded by the government and therefore until these fees start getting
paid back (another) massive deficit has been created. The first set of
loans at the new rate will not start being paid back until 2015 at the
earliest, where we come to another problem. Currently around 30% of
student loans are never paid back and what with both the higher rate of
fee and increased rate of salary prior to pay back it is estimated that
students’ unpaid debt will rise from £24bn to £70bn in 2015/2016
(source: Daily Telegraph).
Here we come to the crux of the flaws in the coalition’s legislation.
Of course, it is deplorable to limit access to education through fees
and reduce state funding for higher education in order to fund a
capitalist system that has, once again, over-stretched its limits; but,
this is also exactly what we would expect from the Tories – the
political representatives of the bourgeoisie. From a purely capitalist
point of view the idea of purely free market education, without state
funded loans, makes sense as it reduces the burden on the state whilst
also allowing for the future CEOs and political leaders – the children
of the ruling class- to buy the best quality education. The issue that
is faced by the coalition is their realisation that such sweeping
counter-reforms would lead to uproar from the working class and
therefore crumbs from the table have been offered.
We can see clear as day, however, that such meagre offerings have
left David Cameron’s ministers with the headache of awkward questions to
answer. The increased fees were supposed to end state funding of
universities but instead a massive shortfall in investment has been
created due to the levels of unpaid debt that will be created. From the
capitalists’ point of view the only way that this can be dealt with is
through cuts to higher education in the form of reducing places (at a
time when there are more university applications than ever before) and
possible increased privatisation – and thus increased education for
profit, not learning.
The more we delve, the more it becomes clear that education under
capitalism is in far from safe hands. Under capitalism it is impossible
to provide free, comprehensive education for all due to the lack of
immediate profitability – which is what fuels the capitalist system.
Whilst the coalition is very much prepared to fund private banks without
asking for a penny in return, it asks the British people to make
sacrifices in order to pay back a deficit they played no part in
creating. Of course we must continue to fight against the increased fees
and further cuts but we must also realise that these demands need to be
related to the overthrow of the capitalist system, which is the only
true way of changing our education system for the benefit of working
people.
