A Little Market, a Lot of State
Amid much acrimony, Britain's Prime Minister, Tony Blair, secured an affirmative verdict last month in the House of Commons on his plans to reform the provision of undergraduate university education in England (Scotland and Wales are exempt). The higher education bill, which still faces committee scrutiny and further votes in both the House of Lords and Commons, passed by a mere 5 votes (316 to 311), a remarkable outcome considering Mr. Blair's Labour Party boasts a majority of 161 seats in the Commons.
What is even more astounding is how implacably opposed figures from all across the country's political spectrum are to infusing market principles into the funding of England's cramped, ageing and cash-strapped universities—especially at a time when most of officialdom champions augmenting enrollment numbers—a task the higher education bill only begins to address.[MORE]
