As part of the party conference programme, NUS hosted a fringe with Million+ at the Labour Party Conference were Wes Streeting warned the party not to hide behind the review stating, "It's shameful that the government will not discuss higher education funding".
"Labour should set out it's position on higher education and recognise that it is not in the interests of opportunity, access or mobility for fees to continue,"
he said. "In a recession we should increase the funding into education to get more people off the dole."
Continuing on this theme, he added that the record number of applicants who were qualified but couldn't get into university this summer should have all got places.
Lammy said, "The Party will stand firm to continue increasing access, making access fairer and increase social mobility but it's not higher education at all costs." However he was also clear that there was "not going to be the same degree of public funding as we have seen over the past 10 years."
David Lammy refused to pre-empt the review and promised that "we will have a proper review that will get going very shortly" but would not give any more details.
Streeting, spoke once again about NUS’ voter registration efforts "NUS will be registering students to vote and encouraging them to vote, we want to make this a doorstep issue…Labour needs to tells these voters what you are going to do about fees."
The clear messages taken from those who attended the fringe was that students must campaign now to debate the alternatives to top-up fees and challenge the political parties to have an open debate.
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