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03. 02. 12. - 18:00

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03. 02. 12. - 18:00

Vranitzky appreciates tuition fees discussion

Former Social Democratic (SPÖ) Chancellor Franz Vranitzky has said he welcomes the current debate about a reintroduction of tuition fees.

The ex-SPÖ chief – who headed a coalition between his party and the People’s Party (ÖVP) between 1986 and 1997 – said yesterday (Thurs) the proposal to ask students for a contribution was "not unfair" in his opinion. Vranitzky stressed that Austria’s universities "need more money". The former politician – who is part of several supervisory boards – said it also had to be ensured that those who could not afford paying for university lectures must be compensated. Vranitzky added it was also of great importance that universities used the additional revenues to improve facilities and services to students.

Vranitzky – who was succeeded by Viktor Klima as party leader and chancellor – said it seemed that his party was "moving towards" creating a socially balanced system of tuition fees. His appeal to continue discussing such a measure comes just weeks after the head of the SPÖ’s Carinthian department presented a possible tuition fees model. Peter Kaiser said everyone who graduated at Austria’s 21 public universities should pay 20 Euros a month until retirement. The SPÖ Carinthia leader said foreign students must be ordered to transfer the fee too. He added that people who earned 40,000 Euros before tax or less a year could be freed from paying anything. Kaiser said students who paid fees between 2001 and 2008 had to be spared from coughing up the suggested 20-Euro charge as well.

Kaiser described his tuition fees model as the "second-best solution". He said a higher education system free from any charges and other kinds of barriers must be preferred at all time. Kaiser said political issues and the economic situation of Austria may make it impossible to abstain from reforming the current structure. Tuition fees had been in effect until 2008 when all parliament factions but the ÖVP supported a draft bill which led to their abolition.

SPÖ’s Lower Austrian department came out in support of Kaiser’s model while SPÖ Upper Austria boss Josef Ackerl rubbished all concepts of this sort. Gabi Burgstaller, SPÖ governor of Salzburg, said she would present an own concept for tuition fees shortly. Burgstaller underlined that it had to be socially balanced and fair. The Association of Socialist Students in Austria (VSStÖ) nevertheless appealed to her to step down. The group said Burgstaller apparently stopped supporting the SPÖ’s ideals. The governor reacted by announcing that "some circles in the SPÖ refuse to hold any kind of discussion".

ÖVP Science Minister Karlheinz Töchterle is in favour of reintroducing tuition fees. However, he rejected Kaiser’s concept. Töchterle made the Social Democrats aware of a possible system of charges he already presented last year. The science minister appealed to the SPÖ to stop trying to avoid a reintroduction. He claimed that no one who could not afford it would be ordered to pay to sit university courses in the future. Töchterle said the country’s private Fachhochschule colleges were offering excellent lectures also because of their decision to charge students.

Austria’s public universities counted around 284,000 students in 2010. This was an increase of 22 per cent compared to 2007. Universities' workforce levels jumped by 12 per cent to 51,100 at the same time. Austria invested 0.93 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP) into its universities in 2007. Around four billion Euros – or 1.05 per cent of the GDP – were spent this way three years later.

Austrian Times

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