The debt generation

Posted by Lleu Williams, Non-Portfolio Officer

"We will vote against any lifting of the tuition fee cap, and campaign to get rid of tuition fees" were the importal words of the Clegg posse, aka the Liberal Democrats in the lead up to the General Election, the wording on pledges that every single on of their MPs signed and one of their parties mainstay policies. It is actually making me laugh reading about that now to be honest, as myself, like many other young people genuinely believed that this would be the case when coalition discussions were taking place.

Where are we now? The Browne Review has reported back suggesting lifting the cap on tuition fees and creating a marketisation of the higher education sector in England, and since then the ConDems have put forward proposals for tuition fees to be capped at £9000 a year.

There have been protests up and down the country yesterday, including walkouts and occupations right across Wales. This has been a great success in highlighting the issue within the media, as well as with the general public. I do not condone the small spates of violence that have taken place, but in the majority yesterday, as with the NUS Demo two weeks ago, young and old have been out on the streets voicing their concerns over proposals that will ensure that the next higher education generation will certainly be the debt generation.

I do not take for one minute the ConDems justification that their new proposals are fairer. Yes, the pay back threshold has been increased to £21,000 (a level it should be at anyway) and that the proposals make HE more attractive to part time students are to be welcomed, but how dare they suggest that the debt of £27,000 for a degree will not put off those who are from the poorest backgrounds in our society. For many of these people, their household incomes are not even that much and I don't think they could even comprehend putting themselves into that much debt, I know I couldn't!

And Mr Willetts, the Universities Minister, said that people from the poorest backgrounds won't have to pay it back until they earn at least the new suggested threshold, is he saying then that people from these backgrounds can't or shouldn't be earning more than £21,000 and thus aspiring to lift themselves out of poverty?

In addition to that, we have seen standard Tory procedure of backing their own kind by not asking for any contribution from business. Society, the individual, the economy and business reap the benefits of a world class higher education system, why aren't business asked to contribute their fair share into funding the system? They certainly aren't doing their bit by increasing the number of graduate jobs in the market at the moment....or even better, how about actually increasing the pitifully small banking levy of £2 billion to something much more substantial such as the £8 billion in bonuses this year and thus reinvesting a proportion of that funding back into teaching budgets, thus alleviating the cost onto the student? But the cyncial side of me says this would be too harsh on their friends high up in the world of business, cheers Cameron!

I am over £13,000 in debt, and I don't think I will ever clear it myself- something the government will do for me when I am 60 anyway. But the government are suggesting any debt that is left after 30 years of repayment will be wiped, I dread to think how much this will cost the government in 30 years time and create a potentially huge vaccum in the coffers at Westminster.

Here in Wales, we are lucky to have the National Assembly to shield us from such volatile and socially destroying proposals. Teaching budgets in England have been cut by 80% (forcing the plug in funding to be met by the student) whilst in Wales they have only been cut by 12%, which will hopefully mean any changes will be minimal.

But what is real is that young people will be put off by this debt, I know I would have been. It's time for the ConDems to sit up and listen to the majority here and not condem the next generation as the the debt generation.

Student Protests Nov 23rd: Defend Our Education!

Across the UK students and lecturers

are today participating in different forms

of protests in opposition to the proposed

changes to the education system.



Over 20,000 students will take part in

numerous peaceful protests much like the one being staged in Aberystwyth. Aberystwyth University is working with local schools to stage a mass student march through the town centre, and are planning a “sit out” in which students of the university walk out of classes and study sessions to do their work in public spaces. Although the Welsh Assembly Government is yet to announce its plans for the future of education in Wales, protesters in Aberystwyth, Cardiff and Swansea all fear the negative impact of London’s decisions for England on those of the Welsh Parliament. University fees will inevitably rise in light of the increase in England and students hope that staging protests against Westminster’s proposals will prevent such a sharp incline of fees in Wales.



Heralded as a “national day of action”, today highlights the solidarity amongst students of all ages who are determined to fight the government’s proposals to cut EMA, increase tuition fees and cut education budgets.



The honourable plight of students, who fiercely want to defend the education system from Con-Dem attacks, is underpinned by the fear that swingeing cuts to university budgets, and the possible tripling of tuition fees to £9000 a year in some cases, will mean the end of affordable and fair higher education. In light of government plans to remove funding for arts and humanities subjects students fear that government reforms will transform the education system into one which merely invests in individuals seeking power, rather than in society’s future as a whole. These concerns mirror those that suggest education will no longer be valued in it or as a way of enriching culture, but rather solely as a means of career based training.



The concerns that increases in fees will mean university becomes an establishment of societies privileged, thus entrenching poverty, alienation and inequality, are not to be taken lightly and certainly raise serious issues when considering the proposed cuts. However is it possible to identify a silver lining to this grey, fatalistic cloud? The fear that the proposed cuts will prevent those from less wealthy backgrounds from attending university and in this sense universities will become exclusive and favourist. In this time of financial crisis and necessary hard-line decision making for the British government is it really as inappropriate as it may initially seem to suggest that the tax payer should only subsidise courses from which they may all benefit in the future such as medicine and engineering? The ConDem government’s current proposal to continue to provide state subsidies to so called “core” subjects such as law, medicine, engineering and some areas of business, but not to subjects of a humanitarian or arts orientation, is based on this logic and in times of such financial crisis some may argue is an unfortunate but necessary compromise.



However, attempts to challenge the assumed fatality of the impending cuts are flouted when considering the context within which today’s cuts are being made, with the current job market only intensifying the severity of the education reforms. How else are students to feel other than fatalistic about the future when they are given no options of how to improve it? An imminent increase in job cuts and reforms of the welfare state alongside the changes to the education system leave many students feeling they have no job prospects and no chance of furthering their education and thus no future. The cuts in education are extreme in failing to provide any alternative for young people the Con Dems have left students with no choices and no hope.



Written by Plaid Cymru Intern

Bex Llewhellin

Whilst Camerons away.........

An estimated 2000 students from Wales have today travelled to London to join fellow peers, lecturers and the general public protesting in response to the unjustly tuition fee increases the Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition proposed in October this year. Reports of riots and violent scenes within Central London have occurred, with some students turning to the Conservative headquarters to make a symbolic stance against the cuts; burning banners and fighting police officers. Although NUS have stated that they are disappointed with these violent acts, the organised event has been one of the biggest in British history with around 50,000 participants joining. Those who joined the demonstration peacefully aimed to send a message to Westminster.

For many welsh students who may be disillusioned with politics, these coalition cuts are not helping the younger generation feel they can engage in politics. Their needs and wants are being distanced with uncertain futures and broken promises by many politicians, especially those of the Lib Dems who promised scrapping fees altogether in their recent manifesto pledges.

Even though the exact price tag on higher education for Welsh students has not been revealed, those seeking to study in England could be faced with debt up to £40,000.00 which will inevitably impact on the price of tutition fees in Wales. For most, this cost is simply unaffordable, creating an unfair two tier society which could increase further the inequality gap in Wales for years to come. With higher education being cut by about 40% there is uncertainty about the future spending on welsh universities with the possibilities of public spending being hit and university departmental budgets being slashed. The future performance of welsh universities is unknown with the possibility of standards falling across Wales as a result.

For Plaid Cymru the disappointment in the increase of tuition fees is apparent with us striving to create a fair and equal society in Wales which Westminster is increasingly making difficult for us to achieve.Plaid Cymru have made a clear alliance with NUS and SNP on the dissatisfaction of the Browne Proposals and have sent a letter to the business Secretary Vice Cable showing a united front between these nations. Those in the Liberal Democrat party who are intending to abstain from voting in these radical changes,should be ashamed of themselves because merely abstaining the vote will mean the proposal will go through anyway. If all the Fib Dem MP’s vote against tuition fee’s then it wouldn’t go through,

The Wealth of Nations

I haven't written a blog for quite some time now, and I have been wondering why. I thought it was probably down to the fact I had been busy with other things, like my new job, training for the Cardiff Half Marathon, spending more time out with mates and my girlfriend. But if I'm honest I think its because I've become a bit bored with politics lately and I think I know partly why.

I think it's because politics has for some time now been all about one thing, the economy. I think if we're honest not many of us truly understand what is happening (and has happened) to the UK's financial system. I have tried to improve my knowledge of this vital subject area, but after about two minutes of getting my head stuck into 'essential economics' my eyes start to close. I have decided on a compromise with the book.... I have just read the summaries of each chapter, which to be honest are pretty useless if taken in isolation.

It can be a bit of a problem when we all think we are experts on a topic, and all those whose ideas are different are either idiots or evil. All we know is that its not going to be good for a lot of people, to say the least. Not even the experts know the full extent of what these cuts will mean for the long term strength of Britains' or Wales' economy. Most of what is offered must, like in most of politics, be an opinion. However, you don't really need to be an expert to see that Wales has been given a harsh deal in the spending review. A loss of jobs at the Newport passport office and the loss of a number of major investment projects, on top of worse cuts to our block grant than that imposed on Scotland and Northern Ireland. Not to mention the problem of Wales' small private sector in comparison to its public sector. But maybe even that is just my opinion based on what I have read in the Welsh press.

I think as we get older we all start to realise the real importance of money, it really does make the world go round whether you like it or not. The capitalistic system is one of mankind's most revolutionary ideas and can be a great force for freedom in the world, but like most things that have great benefits, there has to be some negatives. There are things we need and things we want, and money to be made by those who can supply them. Unfortunately there are also people to be exploited when making that money. In the end it is human nature to want more than we need, and there is nothing wrong with this, but it does sometimes get way out of hand, and has got us into these difficult times.

Whether Wales is suffering disproportionally or not we still have to tackle the one thing that always makes us suffer more than other parts of these islands. We need to take this opportunity and not just blame others for the harsh hand we have been dealt, but to take it upon ourselves to create the wealth in Wales that we all would benefit from. We need a Yes vote in next March's referendum on further powers for the Assembly not just so we can get more money from the UK treasury, but so that we can really start to do things more creatively here in Wales. We need a vote of confidence in ourselves to do things our own way and with our own unique talents. That is the real wealth of all nations, their ability to do things their own way and the confidence to do it.

Like most of us will learn in our lives we need to take some risks to really challenge ourselves if we wish to better ourselves. Sometimes we will get it wrong, but we will learn from it, and when we try again we might just get it right.

By Daniel Pryce Lawrence
South Wales East representative

Charity Walk

Iago ap Steffan (Llywydd Myfywyr Plaid Cymru Students Aberystwyth and West Wales Representative)

A big huge thank you to everyone that supported Myfywyr Plaid Cymru Students Aberystwyth in the charity walk on Saturday. A massive well done to Liam, Jeff, Owain, Michaela and myself for completing the walk.
The walk was in aid of Beacon of Hope (who takes care of people with terminal illnesses) and Wales Air Ambulance; two very important and vital charities. In terms of how much we have raised...so far it has reached over £300!!! Plenty more to collect and every penny, I'm sure, will be very much appreciated by the organisations.
It was a difficult but fun walk. We carried on through strong winds, heavy rain, bitter cold and darkness along the coastal path from Aberystwyth to Aberaeron. Including the lunch break in Llanon; it took us 10 hours and 20 minutes to reach our destination. Still feeling the strain today, but feeling good that it was all for a good cause.
On a final note: as the future of Cymru, we need to remember that politics, although is important, we must still remember that looking after each other and helping others who are most vulnerable in society is our priority...never forget our old community spirit!

An important lesson for Plaid to learn...

Today, Cerith Rhys Jones, non-portfolio officer on the National Exec writes about an important factor that Plaid should consider, as it moves with Wales towards independence:

"A discussion with my grandfather (who, for the record, is English) got me thinking yesterday, about one of Plaid’s major challenges in the years to come. One of the biggest misconceptions people have, is that a nation is the same thing as a nation-state. People will gladly say that they are Welsh before they are British, but they will sometimes think of their citizenship as being the same thing as their nationality.

"There has been plenty of discussion about Plaid being in a crisis. As a party activist and an executive member of the party’s youth wing, I would take the view that the party is not in a crisis but rather, that it really needs some thinking time about its way forward. No matter how much Plaid members and activists say that the election wasn’t all that bad, the truth is that we didn’t do as well as we had hoped and expected and we, as a party, need to think long and hard about our message for the Assembly elections next year, and the local elections on 2012.

"In the long term however, as Wales works towards, first, a full parliament with fiscal autonomy, and eventually, an independent Wales, Plaid needs to focus on changing people’s view of a ‘nation’. (I would say that this would go for other parties too, but how keen they’d be to do this is another matter.)

"Too many people think of a ‘nation’ as a physical entity with a clear geography. To me, and I would think, to the party, a nation needn’t have defined borders and the people of that respective nation needn’t share a specific patch of land. Take Patagonia, for instance. The Welsh people who moved there to establish Y Wladfa (the Welsh Settlement), they went there with the intention of creating a ‘second Wales.’ To this day, their descendants think of themselves as being Welsh Argentine. If we look at that phrase – Welsh Argentine, that is – it can be split in two; into ‘nationality’ and ‘citizenship’. The citizenship is clearly Argentine; of that, let there be no doubt. This works in the same way with us here in Wales. I will always say that I am Welsh first, European second, and British third. As much as I may be against the British institution, I can’t escape the fact that I am a Briton, by law. Wales doesn’t have its own sovereignty (yet), so it is legally impossible to be a ‘citizen’ of the country, in the conventional way. The nationality of a Welsh Argentine person, however, is Welsh. This will confuse some people as it did my grandfather. A ‘nation’ to me, doesn’t mean a group of people who inhabit a specific piece of territory; it is a group of people (or peoples, as would probably be appropriate) who share a heritage, a history, and a feeling. So yes, while a resident of Y Wladfa may hold an Argentine passport, his or her nationality is Welsh, in so much as he or she shares our heritage and history here in Wales.

"This very principle will apply to the Quebecois of Canada. They are by law, of course, Canadian. However, in nationality, they are Quebecois. They are a group of people who share a history and a heritage. I guess this principle could go for any group of people within a nation-state, anywhere on Earth.

"Plaid’s challenge is teaching the people of Wales that although they may be subjects of the United Kingdom, they do have their own heritage and history - an Unique Selling Point, if you will - that makes them Welsh in nationality. Let them think of themselves as British, and what makes them so, and they will list things that are primarily English. As Gwynfor said, “Britishness…is a political synonym that extends English culture of the Scots, the Welsh and the Irish.” This hits the nail right on the head!

"The difficulty that Plaid faces of course, is that too many people in Wales still have trouble thinking about Wales as a country in its own right; they challenge that idea, even. The question they should ask themselves though, is ‘what is a country? What makes a country, a country?’ Again, people will often think that Wales can’t possibly be a country, because it’s a ‘constituent region’ of ‘the mother-country’ of Britain. Britain, though, is not a country. It’s a nation-state. Britain is simply the entity, which contains the countries of Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and England, which are countries and nations in their own right.

"When Plaid looks forward in terms of how it can raise support for full autonomy within the European Union and the United Nations for Wales, it really has to get people to understand that whatever their passport says, their nationality – their heritage, their history, their national persona – is different to that of Britain. If Plaid is to succeed, it needs to ensure that the people recognise Wales as a country in its own right, which is being dictated to by another country.

"Those who disagree with me (or who are unionists), will argue that we are not being dictated to by another country at all; we are part of the UK and so we are governed as part of Britain. Here again, the problem that people think of Wales as a region and the UK as a country, is raising its ugly head. Of course we’re being dictated to by another country – England! Was it not the English who annexed Wales to England, extended English laws unto Wales, and oppressed the Welsh language all those hundreds of years ago – and still do to this day? Does the British government not create laws, which apply only to England and Wales? Is it not true that Wales is treated differently to Scotland? Yes. Yes. Yes.

"The biggest challenge to Plaid, to the SNP, Mebyon Kernow, in fact, any nationalist party, is to show their people, the citizens of their respective nations, that they are their own people, and that there is a huge divide between Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland, Cornwall – wherever – and the nation-state which ultimately governs them.

"It’s all very well and good Plaid in the short term focussing on its successes in the National Assembly as part of the One Wales government (and I wouldn’t for one minute say anything different to that) but if Plaid wants to keep itself as the Party of Wales – to keep its USP, to remain a nationalist party, which will do its best to govern in the short term, but all the while working towards an independent Wales – it has to realise that people still think that they’re country is Britain, and break down that idea.

"People may also rebut my ideas by saying that one’s nationality can also be interpreted as British, in that we as Britons share our own history and heritage. I can accept this to an extent, but here rises Gwynfor’s quote again; that what we perceive to be British is actually English.

"Plaid needs to campaign to teach people that their nation-state is Britain. They are British subjects. They pay their taxes to the British government. But as a people, they are Welsh. Their history is Welsh. Their heritage and their national persona are Welsh. When people grasp and believe this, Plaid won’t have much bother on election day.

"While our passports may tell us that we are subjects of the British crown, we are and always have been citizens of the Welsh nation. It will remain that way until we can look at a Welsh passport and see that we are citizens of the Welsh nation-state.

"The challenge for Plaid is to lead the way on that (long) road to independence, but all the while, making sure that we’re re-elected to the Assembly Government and we continue to do a good job of it."

Windfall Needed Now

by Iago ap Steffan

This is definitely not a new topic of discussion, but one that does need to be talked about time and time again until it has been addressed. I'm talking about a windfall tax. This time I want to bring both the energy companies and banks to the forefront.
The other day I received a British Gas bill for my gas of £45.02! Doesn't sound that bad does it until I mention that it was for just over one month, that I was the only one living there at the time and that I had no gas cooker. Now I'm a student and money is a bit tight at the moment and every penny counts. How can an energy supplier honestly believe that a student could afford potentially a bill for £360 a year? God knows how older people, relying only on state pensions, can afford it and they probably use more energy than myself, especially in the winter months.
The other money making industry are the banks. Not only did they help bring in the recession by their attitudes towards lending, but were also raking it in with the overdraft and late payment fees; especially from those most vulnerable in society that can't keep up with repayments; again like students.
Today we hear that Lloyds Banking Group have made a profit of £1.6billion. This is a bank 73% owned by us, the people. Will this money be repaid back to the government who had to bail them out or to the people who have paid these unnecessary fees? Probably neither. Even though we paid out billions of pounds to save the banks they are still making profits and giving out big bonuses. This is why I support calls for a windfall tax on the banks and energy providers who make stupid amounts of profits to feed the fat cats and The City workers. This is something that I'm pretty sure the vast amount of the population would support and this must be implemented NOW!