Students will make their voices heard at the Scottish Parliament elections, a Dundee student leader has said.
David Currie, president of Abertay University Students’ Association, said it welcomed the support from Dundee’s Labour, Liberal Democrat and SNP candidates for the anti-tuition fees campaign being run by the National Union of Students Scotland.
The Reclaim Your Voice campaign is also calling for increases to student support and the maintenance of university and college places.
Mr Currie said, “We are delighted the Labour, Lib Dem and SNP candidates are backing our campaign and have committed to fighting fees, protecting numbers and improving financial help for students during the next parliament.
“The student vote will make a big difference to the result here in Dundee and it’s clear the student voice is already beginning to be heard loud and clear.
“The students’ association will be continuing to seek this commitment from all of the candidates for Dundee in the run-up to these Scottish Parliament elections.
“In what could be a really close contest any party or candidate that does commit to students can expect to see the difference at the ballot box in May.”
The Tories are the only major party to favour graduates making a financial contribution to the cost of their studies.
A large gap in funding is expected to emerge when tuition fees are trebled south of the border. Estimates of the funding shortfall for Scottish universities have run as high as £300 million a year.
NUS Scotland president Liam Burns said, “Almost all of the main parties now oppose tuition fees, but without increases to the financial help the poorest students get, many talented people will still be priced out of their education.
“Education must be based on ability to learn, not ability to pay. It’s as much about having enough money to live on while you study as it is about ruling out fees.
“We know the fight is not just about getting politicians to say the right things this side of the election. It’s about ensuring that they do the right thing after the election.”