The Liberal Democrats in Britain are calling for students at British colleges to face paying council tax for the first time, newly emerged Whitehall documents reveal.

London / NationalTurk – British Government ministers and local government leaders gathered for a meeting, where a decision was made that councils should be free to charge students council tax.  A senior Liberal Democrat indicated that the decision was going to take effect soon.

Those attending a full-time college or university course are currently exempt from the levy – which typically costs more than £1,000 for an average home.

The Department for Communities and Local Government has released minutes of a meeting held last October between Eric Pickles, the Communities Secretary and senior figures at the Local Government Association, under Freedom of Information laws. At the meeting, Gerald Vernon-Jackson, the leader of Liberal Democrat councillors and head of Portsmouth City Council stated: ‘ Local authorities should have greater discretion over Council Tax exemptions and discounts, such as the student exemption’.

Liberal Democrats : What a treachery on students council tax

Liberal Democrats have mistreated British college students badly enough recently and the current comments of Gerald Vernon-Jackson reopened controversy within the Liberal Democrats over the party’s treatment of students. The party campaigned against increasing tuition fees at the last election – before ultimately supporting a rise in the fees to up to £9,000 from September 2012.

The tax decision caused instant outrage among Liberal Democrat supporters, many of whom are students. A decision to raise the cost of being a student by hundreds of pounds through the introduction of council tax is likely to prove deeply unpopular. The Conservatives are reported to be strongly opposed to finishing the student exemption on council tax payment.

England upbeat : Student tax, tuition fees increased

The Liberal Democrats have been openly criticised over the issue of tuition fees, after refuting on pre-election promises not to increase university charges.

Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg pledged to abandon the fees completely and gained the trust and the support of thousands of university students across Britain, while Liberal Democrats had been in opposition.

‘ We want to abolish tuition fees. We think they’re wrong.’ that was what he claimed before the election as he signed a promise not to raise tuition fees. However after joining the British coalition government, he claimed the economic situation forced him to accept the increase.

Nick Clegg : Liberal Democ-rat-

His party signed up to government policy allowing institutions to charge up to £9,000 pounds annually, a alteration which saw student fees rocket skyhigh.

Tens of thousands of students are protesting the vicious increase in the streets shouting slogans wielding effigies and placards accusing the Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg of  ‘conning’ and deceiving them.

Nick Clegg later admitted he had ‘ not been able to deliver the policy that we held in opposition’ and blamed the financial situation for the alteration, which is called by many ‘eating his words’ or ‘treachery’.

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