WORCESTER’S MP Robin Walker has lent his support to calls from city university chiefs for an increase in tuition fees in line with inflation.
Fees have not been raised since the controversial increase to £9,000 per year in 2012 but bosses at the University of Worcester have called for the cap to be ‘adjusted upwards’ in line with inflation
And despite a number of protests when the coalition Government increased the fees, Mr Walker said he would support a further rise provided it ‘doesn’t put people off going to university’.
A report published by the National Union of Students last week found more than 50 per cent of students believed their course was not worth the cost of their tuition fees.
But speaking to the Observer, Mr Walker confirmed the Government currently had no plans to change the maximum amount of money universities can charge their students.
“I understand that some of the universities want this to be looked at but it is not something the Government is doing,” he said.
“I would like to see tuition fees kept to an affordable level so far as possible, but what we have seen over the last few years is more students going to university than ever before and in particular larger number of students from the poorest backgrounds going to university.”
“It is important that our world class universities remain properly funded and therefore it does not seem unreasonable that the cap on their fees can go up in line with inflation.
“Inflation is currently exceptionally low and has remained around zero for the last six months.
“As long as inflation remains low I cannot see an inflationary increase as being likely to put people off applying to university,” he added.
Mr Walker said the Government would have to review the impact of any changes if fees were to rise.
A University of Worcester spokesperson said: “The University of Worcester takes the view that the current fee level, established by Parliament, should be adjusted upwards with the rate of inflation.
“This is reasonable given that the levels were fixed more than three years ago,” the spokesperson added.
