The announcement by the Tories that they intend to abolish tuition fees is bad news for students and families in Tynemouth according to local MP Alan Campbell.

Alan Campbell said

""Closing the door on future students by reducing the number going to university will blight their career path and damage the economy.

"This announcement is a classic Tory scam. Dressing it up as a tax cut, what the Tories don’t say is that many future students from areas of my constituency where there is no tradition of going on to university, will under the Tories, be stopped from doing so. Higher Education will return to being elitist and many students from even better off areas will find their way blocked.

"The Tory numbers do not add up. To fund their proposals, the Tories will need to make cuts of £430 Million to University funding. That means about 100,000 students losing places and 13,000 lecturers losing their jobs. Ending the support to disadvantaged students would cost a further 6,500 lecturers jobs.

"Over time 150,000 student places would be and University would become for the few once again. Student places would fall by 20% which is of course the 20% cut in spending across the board which the Tories promise."