Author Archives: Simon Kaye

Opinion: in favour of the Browne report

By Simon Kaye | Sun 17th October 2010 - 10:43 am

Back in 2004, when New Labour reformed higher education funding, most Liberal Democrats opposed the changes. I favoured them. ‘Top-up fees’ were, and still are, a liberal solution to higher education funding. Lord Browne’s recommendations don’t change that. Liberal Democrats should think twice before opposing whatever package of reforms is presented to us in the coming weeks.

The central principle – retrospective fee-payment – is, to my mind, a small work of genius. Liberals are always poised between the principles of freedom (self-ownership and personal rights), and fairness (universal equality of opportunity as a very minimum). Higher education is thus a …

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