Catalonia will shield by law the reduction of university fees

The Parliament of Catalonia has assumed the Popular Legislative Initiative (ILP) promoted by student unions and has approved this Wednesday to modify the Catalan Universities Law to shield by law the price reduction of university feesso that the cost does not depend on the current budget year.

The initiative, which establishes that prices follow a “social pricing” model, has prospered with the support of all parliamentary groups and the abstention of the PP. The legislative amendment will include the Government promoting policies and regulations to ensure that no one is excluded from the Catalan university system for “economic reasons, lack of freedom, health problems, disability or any other circumstance”, as well as measures to make the living, dining and transportation expenses.

In addition, in a temporary provision -approved with the abstention of PSC-Units, comuns and Cs-, the Catalan Chamber gives three years to the government for “gradually reduce” prices in undergraduate studies up to a maximum of 17.69 euros –the lowest set by decree 300/2021– and to set a single price in master’s studies equal to or less than 70% of this decree.

The ‘consellera’ of Research and Universities, Gemma Geis, has celebrated that the price of degrees and masters in Catalonia and this price is fixed maximum of 17 euros per credit. He has assured that this reduction “will not have an impact on the budgets of the universities.”

Equal opportunities

The rapporteur for the initiative, Judith Toronjo (Junts)has defended that “nobody in Catalonia should be deprived or hampered in their opportunity to access university higher education due to economic issues”, for which he has highlighted the importance of ensuring equal opportunities and equity in education.

The Socialist David Gonzalez He has warned that this modification will allow the Government not to lower rates for another three years, and he has regretted that the debate has not been used to regulate prices. Instead, Dani Cornella (CUP) He has defended that this modification will allow the reduction to be fixed by law and not depend on the annual budgets of the Government. The deputy of the ‘commons’ Lucas Ferro He has expressed his support for the initiative to shield the price reduction, and has criticized that the transitory provision gives the Government three years to do so, something that he has branded as “accounting trilerismo”.

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Manuel Jesus Acosta (Vox) He has criticized that it is necessary to “wait three years for university fees to be lowered”, and has assured that the proposal is less ambitious than the one defending his training, which is committed to setting the price of the degree and master’s credit at 16.05 euros.

For its part, Nacho Martin Blanco (Cs) He stressed that the proposal shows that “there is a general mistake in the field of priorities” of the Catalan executives in recent years, who consider that they should have reversed the budget cuts as a result of the financial crisis earlier. From the PP, Lorena Roldan He has stressed that they have been defending the reduction of university fees for years, but “the plans of nationalism have been different: they tried to maintain the highest tuition fees in Spain and try to exercise absolute political control over institutions that should be neutral.” The Republican Pau Morales has celebrated that “after years of strike, repression and struggle” this text has been approved, which should give students security that the reduction in university fees will be shielded, and has urged to reverse the underfunding that he assures exists in the universities.