It has been announced that Lord Triesman will become a new "minister for students" (see here).


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Mr. Cameron - will you be appointing a shadow minister for students? If so, who will it be?

For all the things I think the Conservative party has said and done well over the last month, the party still hasn't made any moves to reconnect with students. Examples show that student power can destabilise even the safest of seats (just look at how a student rebellion over top-up fees toppled the cynical minister Anne Campbell from her safe seat in Cambridge).

It's time for the Conservative's to re-engage with students. Green policies and the promotion of social justice (Making British Poverty history) contribute to this, but students are unlikely to completely engage until they hear what the Modern Conservative Party has to offer them.

I hope you have chance to respond to this!

Many thanks.

I wonder if students will be asked to pay an additional representation fee for the luxury of this ministerial appointment. Lol.

I'd be interested to see how this new "representative of students" stands against the pressure of Labour's whips. When push comes to shove, will they really put students over their party interests? I really doubt it.

Yes, Paine, but is it really a question of providing someone to look after student's interests in the first place?

Does the PM really require a minister for students to relate to him that the one concern which most weighs on students is that of tuition fees?

Call me a cynic, but I suspect it has more to do with providing another party crony with a ministerial salary for loyal services rendered.

First of all, would someone care to define 'student' in context?

Initially, one could assume this could mean a person passing from secondary to tertiary eduucation, perhaps with a gap year.

What about 'mature' students, or Open University students, or a person re-training, or sandwich-course students, etc.

What, exactly, is the expected remit for a Minister of Students? Given the wider interests of Lord Triesman, I tend to agree with Phantom's suspicions.

I understand "students" to encompass undergraduates and postgraduates. This is regardless of whether they are young people or mature, or the type of course that is offered. That is the definition used by bodies such as the NUS, for example.

The grey area comes when considering whether Further Education students (A-levels, NVQs, BTECs, etc) are represented as students which, in my opinion, they should be.

If Mr. Cameron doesn't have opportunity to answer the original question, I won't be upset if Mr. Willets comes on here and answers it instead! ;)