Target: Keir Starmer, UK Prime Minister
Goal: Support tuition cuts for all European students.
The ramifications of the UK’s decision to leave the European Union are still being felt. Prime Minister Keir Starmer has stressed the need for Britain to solidify stronger ties with its European allies, for the sake of the economy. But ironically, the cost of education may prove to be the issue that severs these ties for good.
As part of a planned Brexit “reset,” the European Union has requested that UK universities begin cutting tuition for European students to a level more in line with what native British citizens pay. Following Brexit, tuition rates for students from other European countries soared by as much as five times the previous rate. As a consequence, enrollment for European students plummeted in the opposite direction, from roughly 25 percent of UK university admissions to about five percent admissions. Thousands of students were essentially priced out of a high-quality UK education.
So far, UK leadership has not budged from its position that it will not lower tuition rates. Sign the petition below to encourage a revisitation of this hardline decision that could have negative ripple effects.
PETITION LETTER:
Dear Prime Minister Starmer,
A fair and affordable education should be a priority for all universities. Historically, UK universities have honoured this ideal and have in the process graduated some of the most accomplished students in the world. Denying this education to European allies by essentially making UK learning unaffordable is a certain way to destroy this proud tradition.
Even more consequentially, failure to compromise on tuition could endanger an economic reset that UK leadership has strived to make reality. Find a way to open education’s doors to more students and, in the process, reopen the doors of trade and prosperity. With a strong and unwavering educational foundation, everyone wins.
Sincerely,
[Your Name Here]
Photo Credit: Khalifa Yahaya
