Students' anger in Yorkshire as fees set to soar

Proposals unveiled by the Government yesterday will give the green light to Leeds University and others to charge up to 9,000 a year, and were welcomed by leading institutions.

But other universities said they were "disappointed" by the plans and admitted they feared students from poorer backgrounds could be deterred from going into higher education.

Students in Sheffield turned on Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg, who had pledged to fight against any increase in tuition fees at the General Election, and claimed the move would create a two-tier system where elite universities would become "the domain of the rich".

Six hundred students are expected to join a huge national protest in London next week against the fee increases and Government funding cuts.

The president of Sheffield Students' Union, Josh Forstenzer, said: "This is an utter betrayal. Students and their families put their faith in the Liberal Democrats in May but were completely deceived.

"The proposal that universities could charge anywhere between 6,000 and 9,000 is outrageous."

Ministers say that by ensuring students will only pay fees after their studies when earning at least 21,000 should stop people being deterred from going to university. High earners will also pay a higher rate of interest in an attempt to make the policy more progressive, and well-off students who pay off loans early will be charged a penalty.

But as well as being politically divisive – a Commons rebellion being likely – the plans to triple the maximum amount that can be charged in tuition fees have also split opinion among universities.

The Russell Group of the country's 20 top institutions welcomed the package and said increased fees would provide a "lifesaving cash transfusion" for universities facing cuts of up to 80 per cent in funding for teaching.

Research released by Labour last night suggested Leeds could lose 57m, more than half of its teaching grant, and its vice-chancellor Prof Michael Arthur said yesterday's announcement on fees was a "very important development". He has previously indicated that the university could be looking at fees of between 7,000 and 8,000 a year.

Prof Arthur said: "It sends a loud signal that the Government recognises the importance of higher education to the future of our country, its economy and the ability of universities to help the country out of recession."

He also said the university would take its responsibility to help students from lower income backgrounds very seriously and said he was becoming concerned by those in higher education who keep insisting increased fees "will lead us to disaster".

"The more students from less well-off backgrounds are told they cannot afford higher education, the more they will believe it," he said.

The University of Sheffield, another Russell Group institution, also said that given Government funding cuts "the overall financial sustainability of UK Higher Education will be at great risk" without alternative funding.

But Prof Mark Cleary, vice-chancellor of the University of Bradford, said he was "disappointed" to see the raising of the cap on fees to 9,000.

"The funding cuts will mean universities have no choice but to consider raising tuition fees and I am deeply concerned that the Government is not going to do enough to support students from lower income families," he said.

Prof Peter Slee, Deputy Vice-Chancellor at the University of Huddersfield said institutions would be "forced" to "bridge the very large funding gap by charging higher fees.