I was very disappointed by your coverage of my party’s position on college funding (“LibDems afraid to commit”, FE Focus, February 18). Let’s be clear. Labour has been in power since 1997 and has failed to close the funding gap between schools and colleges.
The Liberal Democrat position is unequivocal. All institutions delivering the same type of provision - for example, A-level history - be they school or college, would get the same level of unit funding.
Only the Liberal Democrats are 100-per-cent supportive of the Tomlinson recommendations, which not only present the opportunity to address the curriculum and qualifications structure but to underpin it with a financial model based on activity-led funding.
This is our party’s commitment - to put, at long last, vocational education at the heart, and not the periphery, of our education system.
Phil Willis, MP Liberal Democrat Shadow Education Secretary
The editor writes: The article did not question the party’s commitment to vocational education. But, when interviewed, its further and higher education spokesman David Rendel told our reporter that he could not say at this stage whether the money would be available.
