@cstross I'm not convinced by the common UK view that increasing fees have been driven by the expansion of university places. In France anybody that passes their 'bac' at the end of school automatically gets a uni place - and more students go, and more get degrees, than in the UK.My daughter has just finished a 5-year university course here in France. Both her fees and living costs were paid by the state. She could get a 3-course meal at her uni every day for 1€. She could hire a bike for 1€ a YEAR. She could go from home to her uni in Strasbourg by train for 60€ - a journey further than Newcastle-London. She spent a term in Portugal, entirely funded by the state and EU (and she was doing chemistry, not languages), as well as another term in Paris, also paid. If France can do this, why can't the UK?@HighlandLawyer @ChrisMayLA6