Govt move ‘a breach of faith’

Press, 2 December 1989, Page 10

Govt move ‘a breach of faith’

By MARITA VANDENBERG The Government’s decision to siphon off revenue raised from increased university fees is a breach of faith, says the chairman of the Lincoln College Council, Sir Allan Wright. He said the council was dismayed to find that only about half the extra revenue raised from next year’s fees rise would be available to universities. The rest will be used to subsidise other tertiary institutions. The Government’s latest move was a breach of faith with university students who had been led to believe that the new higher fees were being levied to relieve pressures in their own institutions. “After all the restrictions and cutbacks in the real level of funding per student in the universities, and after all the calls for universities to find alternative sources of funding, this latest decision is appalling,’’ he said. “It is particularly galling for agricultural students to see an extra 11.6 million being made available to help student nurses, physiotherapists and occupational therapists with costs associated with their courses, when they face the high cost of farm field trips. "Their opportunity for vacation earnings has been reduced by the exclusion of farm work from the student job search programme,” he said.

Sir Allan said practical farm work was a requirement of most agricultural courses.