A delegation from the Plaid Cymru Federation of Students this week met with Cynog Dafis AM to make their contribution to Plaid Cymru's 2001 General election Manifesto. The students expressed their grave concern that the continuing crisis in higher education funding would keep prospective students away from rural universities and that this would put further pressure on the rural economy. The current student funding system has severely restricted access to higher education to students from poorer backgrounds and has put rural universities such as Aberystwyth and Lampeter under increasing pressure to sustain recruitment numbers.
Recent trends show that students are being forced to attend universities closer to their homes.
The Plaid Cymru Manifesto will state that higher education should be seen as an important investment in the future of Wales and that it should be free for all. We believe that increased funding for Higher Education must come from additional public investment in Education and Training.