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REVIEW UNDER WAY AS SCOTTISH PARLIAMENT SCRAPS FEES

Last month, MSPs voted to scrap the graduate endowment scheme, prompting outrage from English taxpayers and students alike. This change means Scottish students are able to attend university free of charge, whilst their English counterparts must pay the full £3,070 per year. Most English students believe that tuition fees should also be scrapped in England, making a fairer Higher Education system accessible to all. In 2001, the Scottish parliament voted in favour of abolishing student fees, favouring a graduate endowment scheme under which graduates paid a tax back to the sum of £2,289. This has now also been scrapped allowing Scottish students to attend Scottish universities for free.

The Prime Minister, Gordon Brown has ordered a review of the Barnett formula, a policy under which Scots receive £1,500 subsidy from English taxpayers. The Barnett formula, devised in the late 70’s automatically adjusts levels of public spending in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. Lord Barnett has claimed the formula was not intended as a permanent solution, saying “I didn’t create this formula to give Scotland an advantage over the rest of the country.”

The review was ordered to counteract the alleged growing resentment between the two nations after it was revealed the English receive, on average, £7,121 of public spending per person per year, whereas in Scotland the sum is £8,623. The formula affects all branches of public spending, including the NHS, prescriptions, healthcare and higher education.

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