Ryan Henson: The Coalition is making progress amongst students in the university tuition fees debate

Ryan Henson is currently studying History at Queen Mary, University of London.

Two events in the last fortnight suggest the Coalition is making progress amongst students in the university tuition fees debate.

First, Clare Solomon, President of the University London Union (ULU) and representative of the more radical student protesters, was defeated in her attempt to win re-election. Second, industrial action taken on Tuesday by the University College Union (UCU) failed to gain any substantial support and was unsuccessful in its attempt to cause widespread disruption on campuses.

You may remember Clare Solomon from the student protests last year when, appearing on Newsnight, she refused to condemn individuals who attacked police officers and vandalised public property. Solomon's defeat was a clear rebuttal to those college intellectuals, liberal commentators, and the more militant trade union leaders who believed (or hoped) that students would provide the lead in violently opposing the Coalition's deficit reduction plan.

Contrary to her claims; there was no right-wing alliance against Solomon and her opponent made little impact on the student electorate. Rather, Solomon was defeated because students rejected her aggressive tactics, support for violent protests, and felt her politically motivated leadership to be out of step with mainstream student opinion. Solomon's defeat does not herald a reversal in student opposition to university spending cuts. It does, however, suggest that more moderate voices are starting to prevail.

Similarly, that unsuccessful industrial action by the UCU is a sign of how the tuition fees debate is changing. Although it was officially due to a dispute over pensions, a cursory glance at the UCU website reveals an organisation dedicated to political protest with a clear anti-government agenda. Tuesday's unsuccessful strike clearly demonstrates how most students and lecturers are no longer willing to accept the long held trade union policy of using education as a political tool, to further an ideological agenda.

Ryan Henson: Simon Hughes ought to be focusing on improving state schools, not encouraging universities to discriminate against those from private schools

Ryan Henson is currently studying History at Queen Mary, University of London.

Simon Hughes, Deputy Leader of the Liberal Democrats, has begun life as the government's advisor on access to higher education, by making a speech calling on universities to reduce their intake of privately educated pupils. In what appears to be a straightforward attempt to repair Liberal Democrat morale after the trauma of the tuition fee protests, Hughes, who is not a member of the Government, claims universities are "failing miserably" to reflect society.

Let me start by making one thing absolutely clear: students from all backgrounds, rich or poor, young or old, regardless of gender or ethnicity, deserve an equal chance to go to university. Currently, students from poorer backgrounds are less likely to go to university compared to students from better-off backgrounds. This isn't fair. It's good news, then, that the Coalition has appointed Simon Hughes, and it's encouraging to see this issue being taken seriously by the new Government.

Sadly, though, Hughes is wrong to suggest the problem would be solved by encouraging universities to discriminate against privately-educated students.  

If we accept the statement, that all students, regardless of background, deserve an equal chance of going to university, then why should universities be allowed to punish students fortunate enough to have received a private education? Admission to university should remain as it is: based on merit and ability.  Hughes is right to highlight the problem, but wrong in his approach to solving it.