Wycombe Liberal Democrats

Liberal Democrat Councillors Steve Guy & Trevor Snaith have submitted the following motion which will be debated at the next full council meeting on 13th December. The meeting is open to the public.

Wycombe Liberal Democrats submitted the  motion (below) to our Regional conference which was overwhelmingly passed with just 3 votes against.

Our Parliamentary Candidate Steve Guy proposed the motion saying that he had given an undertaking to students in Wycombe that if elected he would vote against increasing tuition fees.

Callum Morton, Student President at Amersham & Wycombe College spoke on behalf of local students, asking Conference to back the motion and send a clear message to MP’s that they should honour the pledge they made.

The motion will be sent to the Liberal Democrat Parliamentary Party at Westminster and all Liberal Democrats MP’s in our region.

The motion in full:

Conference notes that:
I)        Liberal Democrat ministers in Government have taken the decision to promote increased tuition fees for students in Higher Education.
II)       On 13th October 2010 the Federal Policy committee issued a statement confirming that Liberal Democrat policy remains to phase out tuition fees. A policy that was included in the 2010 election manifesto and the amended motion passed at the special conference in Birmingham on 16th May 2010.
III)     The prospect of increasing student debt acts as a disincentive, particularly among prospective students from poorer households, to those students engaging in degree level courses.
IV)   Many Liberal Democrat candidates who are now Members of Parliament signed the National Union Of Students ‘Vote for Students’ pledge which stated “I pledge to vote against any increase in fees in the next parliament and to pressure the government to introduce a fairer alternative”

Conference calls on Liberal Democrat Members of Parliament to:
I)        Honour the pledge they made before the election and vote against any increase in Tuition fees.
II)       Work with our coalition partners and others to introduce a fairer alternative.

Earlier this week this week I went to Afghanistan and Pakistan to see for myself the problems and challenges that those countries face. The coalition government is committed to playing our part to helping ensure that the region has a peaceful and prosperous future.

It was my second visit to our armed forces in Afghanistan, where I saw again the bravery and professionalism of our troops. Whilst the situation in the country is still difficult, I believe that we are beginning to turn the corner. As the Prime Minister has made clear, British combat troops will leave Afghanistan by 2015 and it is important that by then we have a full political settlement to take the country forward.

Yesterday I was in Pakistan where I saw the almost unimaginable impact of the terrible floods. It is almost impossible to appreciate their scale — the affected area is approximately the same size as the UK.

I was deeply moved as I witnessed the flooding from the air. It is sadly clear that it will take years for life in Pakistan to come back to normal. I met with President Zardari and aid agency workers to discuss aid being delivered to Pakistan and what role Britain and the international community can play.

I’m proud that the British people and government have together contributed over £100m to assist the aid efforts. If you would like to donate to the DEC appeal for Pakistan, as I know many people will have done already, you can do so here: www.dec.org.uk

Best Wishes,

Nick Clegg MP

Leader of the Liberal Democrats & Deputy Prime Minister