Fred Mackintosh, prospective Liberal Democrat MP for Edinburgh South, has warned that if Labour and Conservative plans to raise tuition fees after the election go ahead, in the next five years students from other parts of the UK wishing to study in Scotland will be left with debts as high as £38,000.

His warning follows his appearance at hustings held by Edinburgh University Student Association where there were animated exchanges between students and candidates regarding student finance policy.

Commenting, Fred Mackintosh said:

"Labour and the Conservatives have been trying to keep tuition fees out of this election campaign. It’s because they don’t want to come clean with you about what they’re planning. Despite the huge financial strain fees already place on Britain’s young people, it is clear both Labour and the Conservatives want to lift the cap on fees.

"If fees rise to £5,000 a year, as many rumours suggest they would, within five years some students will be leaving university up to £38,000 in debt. I first came to Edinburgh as a student myself in 1989 and have never left, so it saddens me to hear about students from other parts of the UK who can simply no longer afford to go to University in Edinburgh, or at all.

"Only the Liberal Democrats are committed to scrapping tuition fees and opposing any attempt to raise them. We will phase out tuition fees over six years, starting by immediately scrapping final year fees for students doing their first degree.

"If we have learnt one thing from the economic crisis, it is that you can’t build a future on debt."

Notes:

According to recent reports, it is predicted fees could rise to £7,000 under Labour or the Conservatives:

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/education/article6727699...

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1202408/Middle-class-face-7-000-...

We predict that this cap would rise with inflation, totaling £22,567 for a student at university between 2012 and 2015. Maintenance loans are a maximum £4,950 for non-London students and £6,928 in London, with slightly lower rates for final year students. Working from Budget inflation estimates, this is predicted to rise to be a total maximum of £15,556 for a student at university between 2012 and 2015, or 21,654 for a student in London. Total debt for a student graduating in 2015 would, therefore, be £38,123 for a student outside London and £44,221 for a London student.