SO, the Education Bill has scraped through Parliament, and the main reason given, according to Ivan Lewis MP, is that it will provide £1 billion additional income for higher education. As if there were no better ways to fund education.

Since Labour came into power in 1997 they have cut corporation tax, putting £20 billion into the pockets of corporations. If we had the same top rate of company taxation as the European average, there would be another £2 billion to expand university education. If so-called "defence" spending was the same as the EU average, two per cent of GDP, there would be another £5 billion for Chancellor Gordon Brown to play with.

The £3.8 billion set aside for the post-war reconstruction and occupation of Iraq, a war we were led into by lies, amounts to £30.8 billion.

One of the reasons the Education Secretary gave for top-up fees was that academic salaries lag behind the rise in earnings. How thoughtful of him! So why isn't such concern shown for the pensioners, who have been suffering for years from the removal of the link between pensions and the average wage.

I am sure that the Government's policies on all these issues will cost them dearly at the next elections, local and national.

ELIZABETH TEBBS