Nick Clegg, leader of the Lib Dems

In terms of education the policy committee supported the abolition of tuition fees for first Higher Education degree qualifications in early 2009.

However, later that year Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg said that while he was committed to the policy, it would have to remain as an “aspiration” until the state of public finances improved. This meant that although this is what they would like to do, it could only be done when it was possible to do so, as it would cost £12.5 billion.

The plan is to ‘phase out tuition fees over the next six years’. Mr Clegg has stated that this will be done in a step by step process, ending tuition fees in approximately 2015.

The party’s proposals, which aim to make high quality education and training available to all, also include, reforming the bursary scheme to make it available more fairly across universities and improving access to Higher Education for under-represented groups.

The lists below show what the Liberal Democrats intend to do with education if they are elected this year.

• Replacing the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCA) and the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) with a single Council for Adult Skills and Higher Education, while transferring 16-19 LSC funding for education and training, including apprenticeships, to local authorities.

• Developing a credit-based framework for learning across the FE and HE sectors, using a modular system with funding following the student.

Enhance University education and research by:

• Developing a common recognised teaching qualification for university lecturers which should first be introduced as an element of doctoral programmes to train all new entrants to university teaching, before ultimately being extended to all those teaching in HE.

• Developing doctoral programmes which better prepare graduates for the research world.

• Resisting moves to concentrate research in a handful of universities and creating mechanisms to ensure that strategically important new research areas are supported.

• Developing with the banks a Career Development Loan scheme to assist students to undertake postgraduate study.

• Improving access to Higher Education for under-represented groups through transparent and fair admissions criteria which take into account educational background when considering attainment.

• Reversing cuts to provision for study of Equivalent and Lower Qualifications.

• Reforming the existing bursary scheme to make it available more fairly across universities on the basis of encouraging study of shortage subjects, and rewarding good performance at University.

• Defend and strengthen academic freedom and free expression on campus by guaranteeing research and publication freedom and removing unjustified and arbitrary restrictions – such as ‘No Platform’ policies – on lawful association and lawful free expression.

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