Monday meltdown for Clegg?
By Ian Dunt
Nick Clegg’s attempt to negotiate his way through the tuition fees row took a major hit today, as two members of his ministerial team threatened to quit over the proposals.
Liberal Democrat transport minister Norman Baker told the BBC he was considering resigning over the issue while the parliamentary private secretary to the Scotland secretary also said he was considering resigning.
Asked by the BBC whether he would be backing the rise in tuition fees or abstaining, Mr Baker answered: “Or voting against. There are three options and, to be honest with you, I genuinely haven’t decided.”
He added: “It’s an option if you resign. There are three options on the table and I haven’t yet decided what I’m going to do.
“There’s a meeting of the parliamentary party on Wednesday and I’ll be listening very closely to my colleagues and we’ll try to reach a common position if we can on that particular occasion.
“It’s a very serious issue – and it’s the most difficult issue I’ve faced frankly – but I want to get the decision right. I’m not going to tell you now because I haven’t decided. I will decide before the vote.”
Meanwhile, Edinburgh West MP Michael Crockart is understood to have said that he intends to vote against the plans.
In a curious twist, two seperate interviews with Mr Crockart – one with the BBC and one with the Evening Standard – were both discovered to have been given by an imposter. Several media outlets were forced to correct reports that Mr Crockart had already resigned, although he is thought to still be considering his options.
Parliamentary private secretaries are bound by Cabinet collective responsibility but that notion has been somewhat eroded in recent years.
The surprise move comes as furious behind-the-scenes negotiations take place in Westminster ahead of the vote on Thursday.
Deputy party leader Simon Hughes’ plan for all Lib Dem MPs to abstain were scuppered over the weekend, suggesting the party will now vote for, against and abstain from the bill in a three-way split.
Ministerial-level Lib Dems such as Danny Alexander and Vince Cable are likely to vote for it.
The Independent newspaper suggested this morning that energy and climate change secretary Chris Huhne, who battled Nick Clegg for the party leadership in 2007, may vote against the bill, however.
In exchange for his support on tuition fees, Nick Clegg appears to have secured firm commitments to take on corporation tax avoidance – a key plank of youth protests in central London this weekend, which targeted Top Shop.
Treasury minister David Gauke is expected to announce plans for legislation on the subject tomorrow.
There are also promises yesterday about extra help for poorer students, with 18,000 students from less-advantaged backgrounds being exempt from the fees for their first year.
Former leaders Charles Kennedy and Ming Campbell are expected to vote against an increase in tuition fees.
But Paddy Ashdown went out of his way to support Mr Clegg in a Today programme interview this morning.
“What we’re doing is going through a process and this is all out in the open, [and] being done without rancour, which is very important to hold the party together,” he said.
“I personally think that Nick has handled this with great wisdom and a good deal of courage. It’s not the first time when the Liberal Democrats have taken, in the short term, [an] unpopular decision that they believe to be right which has delivered benefit in the long term.”
“Although there is a commitment that has been made during the election, there is another agreement we have to stick to which is the coalition agreement. That says at the very least you will abstain on this, vote for it if you can.”
Lib Dem MP Greg Mulholland called for a delay to the vote so that a full public consultation could be held.
“There are very, very few who will support this motion. There are a few considering whether to abstain or vote against. But there are already a notable number who have decided that they will vote against this if it comes to it,” he said.
“And they are also saying, as I am, that really we shouldn’t be going ahead with this because we’ve got ourselves into a mess and the only way out of this is to not have a vote on Thursday.”
Student protest groups are galvanising for the most important week in their campaign.
Colleges and sixth forms across the country already saw protests this lunchtime against plans to axe the Education Maintenance Allowance.
Meanwhile, occupations of university campuses continue across the country, with the ongoing University College London (UCL) action winning the most attention.
Universities across the country will see demonstrations on Wednesday, while the movement will once again hit London on Thursday as thousands of students arrive in Westminster to lobby their MPs, rally outside parliament and hold a candlelit vigil.
Those actions have been organised predominantly by the National Union of Students (NUS), but the union is struggling to maintain its leadership of the movement since president Aaron Porter failed to offer enough active support to the occupations and direct action events across the country.
The NUS president is caught between a rock and a hard place, as right-wing groups call for his resignation over the violence at Millbank last month and student groups call for him to be more supportive of direct action strategies.
Mr Porter was keen to emphasise the strength of the movement today as he promoted the demonstrations this week.
“The joint NUS and UCU [Universities Colleges Union] march that brought together 50,0000 people on November 10th has provided the spur to a new wave of activism and lobbying, placing the government’s policy on fees and student support policy under huge pressure,” he said.
“This week we must keep that pressure up as the vote approaches. MPs can be left in no doubt as to the widespread public opposition to these plans or of the consequences of steamrollering them through parliament.”
Bob Crow, general secretary of the Rail Maritime and Transport (RMT) union, announced plans to support the student protest, as public sector and student activists began to form links in a bid to fight off government spending cuts.
“This campaign is very much in the front line of the fight back against the ConDem cuts and has united pensioners, students and trade unionists in an imaginative and co-ordinated coalition of resistance,” he wrote to members.
“It has exposed the lies and hypocrisy of the Lib Dems and has opened up serious cracks in the coalition that we can all drive a wedge into.
“RMT was delighted to have students supporting our picket lines during the last Tube strike and we will make sure that there is a high-profile presence from RMT supporting the students in their action this week.”
The police will be monitoring social networking websites to evaluate the level of attendance at the events, with a large police presence expected in Westminster on Thursday as the vote takes place.
