People before Profit candidate for the West Belfast Assembly constituency -Gerry Carroll ,has issued a challenge to DEL Minister Danny Kennedy to a public debate over tuition fees.
‘Coming into the election an issue for many current and potential students as well as their families is the issue of tuition fees’.
‘Minister Kennedy has stated that fees will have to increase to £6,000 a year, this will see the University door slammed in the face of thousands of students’.
‘As a former student and student representative myself I know the difficulties many students already face in University-the ministers plans will see university life get harder as students struggle to pay an outrageous £18,000 for a three year degree.
‘At the moment the only options presented is either higher fees or slashing thousands of jobs in education. In People Before Profit we believe there is an alternative to this unfair and short-sighted vision for education. I want to debate the Minister on that alternative, I believe he has an obligation to debate his plans for education especially at a time when thousands of young people go to the polls ‘.