Usra Abdirahman, Waltham Forest Socialist Party
As a sixth-form student about to face the crushing reality of university costs, I am absolutely furious about the state of tuition fees. £9,250 a year for a degree? It’s outrageous and the Labour government is trying to increase them! The education system leaves working-class students like me buried in debt before we even start our careers. This isn’t about getting a better future anymore – it’s about surviving a system that is set up to keep the rich at the top and the rest of us struggling to get by.
And let’s not even get started on colleges. We’re expected to perform well in exams, yet the resources and support we need to actually succeed are being slashed year after year. Teachers are underpaid, classrooms are overcrowded, and the government just doesn’t care. It’s clear that the people in charge have abandoned us, leaving colleges underfunded and students to pick up the pieces. How are we supposed to prepare for university when we’re not even given the chance to excel at the basic level?
The Labour government says its reforms will fix a broken system – that’s all well and good, but can we trust them? How many times have we heard empty promises like this before? Talk is cheap, and I’m fed up with politicians who make nice speeches but fail to deliver when it counts. We need more than just words; we need real change. We need free, accessible education from top to bottom, and we need proper funding for colleges that are being left to rot.
Education should be a right, not a privilege for the wealthy. The wealth is there – in the pockets of the super-rich. It’s time we stand up and demand that the government invests in our future.
