Parties asked to state opposition to tuition fee rises before election

Derry University Group campaigners have asked parties in the North to state their positions on a range of issues, in advance of the local government elections on May 18. 

The group advocates for an independent third-level higher education institution in Derry, managed autonomously by the city-region.

The campaigners have asked the parties to state their positions on “tuition fee rises; a cross-border university; an oversight commission; Belfast’s monopoly on higher education places; and Ulster University’s debt.

The Derry University Group’s call followed Wednesday’s debate in the British House of Commons on Northern Ireland (Interim Arrangements), during which SDLP leader, Colum Eastwood, asked if funding raised by the new Higher Education finance structure would go towards increasing student numbers in Derry.

The group has repeatedly stated that Derry’s promised 10,000 students must be allocated first from existing numbers and that an oversight commission must be established to, inter alia, ensure regional balance in Higher Education and tackle Belfast’s unsustainable monopoly on student places, which currently stands at 83%.

During the debate, British Minister of State Steve Baker made it clear he intended to raise tuition fees or “introduce new structures” for students in the North. 

Derry University Group asked all parties fielding candidates in next week’s election to state whether or not they opposed the measure.

A spokesperson for the Derry University Group asked: “How do the parties here intend to oppose this measure and how do they intend to reverse it when Stormont reconvenes.

“Before next week’s election, can the parties also state if they will establish an All-Island body to develop an independent cross-border university in the North West?

“Will they Introduce an Oversight Committee for universities in the North as recommended by the Royal Irish Academy?

“Will they introduce measures to ensure that Belfast's monopoly on student places, which currently at 83%, comes to an end?

“And, finally, will they prevent Ulster University from acquiring and using state revenue to subsidise its debt?”