Salmond’s “plug the gap” promise: Other parties continuing with fantasy pledges

In an interview with STV today, Alex Salmond has continued the other parties' fantasy pledges on higher education by promising to find the money to "plug the gap" for the whole of the next parliament.

Derek Brownlee, Scottish Conservative Finance Spokesperson, said:

"However much we might wish it were otherwise, this is the stuff of fantasy. Despite all the evidence, Labour, Lib Dems and the SNP refuse to find the money needed to bridge the real funding gap. They are threatening our Universities' standing, threatening up to 13,000 student places and are out of tune with public opinion, as the latest polling shows.

"It is clear that only the Scottish Conservatives are credible on higher education funding. Our plans for a graduate contribution, backed by two-thirds of Scots, will ensure our universities retain their excellence and can provide more bursary support for our poorest students."

Below is the link to the STV article and the key extract

http://news.stv.tv/election-2011/244657-alex-salmond-snp-will-plug-the-further-education-spending-gap/

Mr Salmond said the SNP would support further education using public funds, saying: "We are not going to allow Scotland's Universities to be at a competitive disadvantage."

And he pledged that a re-elected SNP Government would "plug the further education funding gap" for the entirety of the next Parliament.

"We've made that commitment, and we'll stick to it", he added.

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