SDLP Youth has condemned the Department of Employment and Learning’s plans to increase university tuition fees.

SDLP Youth Chairman Gary McKeown said: “The plans set out by Reg Empey’s department would see tuition fees rising by £75 a year to £3,145. Do they think students and their parents are made of money?

“Instead of sending fees rocketing, Reg Empey should be looking at scrapping them altogether. The Sinn Féin/ DUP axis has said that they are committed to building the northern economy- central to this is a well-educated workforce, so Reg should ask them to put their money where their mouth is and produce the cash to properly fund third-level education.

“SDLP Youth has been opposed to tuition fees for several years now- as far as we are concerned they amount to a tax on learning. Money should not even come into the equation when people are thinking about going to university- everyone has a right to free education, and the Assembly should look at making this a reality,” concluded Mr McKeown.

As part of the anti-coke network, SDLP Youth organised an event on Monday 3rd December in order to show support and raise awareness of the moral and human wrongs of Coca Cola in order to coincide with Political Activism week at Queens University Student’s Union.

Chair of SDLP@Queens, Katherine McCloskey said that, “It is appalling that in this day and age, that any company can get away with such ill treatment of its workers. The issue that concerns me most is the fact that the majority of people are ignorant to what is being allowed to continue, thus enabling the profit and status of these companies to go from strength to strength.”

“SDLP Youth will continue to support this campaign, whether it is in the form of protest, leaflet distribution, or simply not buying Coca Cola products. Coca Cola needs to know that there are people out there willing to stand up for those whose voices are not being heard in the developing world.”