As universities meet over the coming weeks to decide what fee they will charge students from the rest of the UK, it is crucial that they stand by Scotland’s historic tradition and put fairness and access at the heart of their decisions.

NUS Scotland believes that tuition fees are wrong, regardless of where you come from. Creating a market through variable fees will unfairly shut people out of the incredible opportunities that Scottish universities provide. We are, therefore, calling on all principals in Scotland to:

- minimise any fee increase, showing that Scottish universities value the ability to learn over the ability to pay for students from the rest of the UK;

- provide a strong bursaryfee-waiver system to protect access for the poorest students and to support NUS Scotland’s call for a national scheme;

- reject the consumerisation of education through creating variation in pricing between courses.

Now is the time for Scottish principals to show true leadership and demonstrate that Scottish education can be the best and fairest.

Robin Parker, president of NUS Scotland.