SCOTLAND: Rectors mount assault against return of fees

Leading figures from Scotland's ancient universities have grouped together to mount an assault against the possible return of tuition fees to Scottish universities, writes Edd McCracken for the Sunday Herald.

Rectors from the universities of Edinburgh, Glasgow, St Andrews, Aberdeen and Dundee will issue a statement this week designed to challenge a "creeping acceptance" among university principals that introducing top-up fees is inevitable.

Sir Andrew Cubie, whose report led to the abolition of up-front fees in Scotland in 2000, recently urged politicians to consider making students pay after graduation. His comments came after Lord Sutherland, former head of Universities Scotland, called for fees to be reintroduced. But rectors of the ancient universities said in a joint statement: "We wish to make absolutely clear our commitment to the principle of free higher education in Scotland, which we believe is a vital part of the Scottish egalitarian tradition."
Full report on The Herald site