Scots turn on tuition fees

Scotland's three opposition parties have focused on the abolition of tuition fees for students north of the border as they launched their manifestoes for the Scottish Parliament this week.

The Scottish National Party has also included the restoration of grants for 20,000 students as one of ten "key pledges". It would inject new money into further and higher education and review further education colleges, ensuring that college boards are representative of their communities.

It will maintain the Scottish Higher Education Funding Council, with higher education policy and spending being scrutinised by a sub-committee of the parliamentary education and culture committee. It will also legislate for all universities to have an elected rector with the right to chair the university court.

The Scottish Liberal Democrats' pledges include axeing fourth-year tuition fees for students from the rest of the United Kingdom. They will also quadruple access funds to Pounds 14 million to help the poorest students.

They say they will reform and improve the funding of further education colleges, creating a modern, prestigious apprenticeship system that combines on-the-job training and study.

The Liberal Democrats support an independent UK pay review body for higher and further education, whose recommendations can only be overturned by parliament. They propose a standing consultative commission on education and a department of education and enterprise overseen by a parliamentary select committee.

Scottish Conservatives are promising to replace tuition fees with an annual Pounds 1,000 "Saltire Award" for Scottish students who achieve minimum entry standards. This could be redeemed at any UK university and would not be means tested. The Tories would also remove the "Scottish anomaly" of students from elsewhere in the UK having to pay fourth-year tuition fees.

The Scottish Labour Party will unveil its manifesto next week.