Clegg faces rebellion over tuition fees vote

Mr Clegg did however announce that he had secured the backing of all his 17 ministers for tomorrow’s vote, which could treble the maximum annual charge to £9,000.

Mr Clegg called a closed door meeting of the parliamentary party last night, urging them to “walk through the fire with him”.

He told MPs he hoped they would collectively abstain in the key ballot, but it had become clear that was not possible.

He conceded that all Lib Dems held strong views on the issue, according to aides, and praised the way they had conducted themselves without showing personal animosity.

But Mr Clegg insisted that with money tight, the coalition had decided to pump funds into early-years education.

Afterwards, Mr Clegg told reporters the threat of a ministerial revolt over the policy had disappeared, despite transport minister Norman Baker previously suggesting he had not decided which way to vote.

He said: “I’ve listened to the debate, I’ve listened to the protesters, I’ve listened to my party and, having done that, I can announce now that all Liberal Democrat ministers – every single one – will vote for this measure when it comes to the vote on Thursday.

“Because in these difficult circumstances, where the country doesn’t have very much money, this is the best and fairest possible way to ensure we have world-class universities for generations to come and that youngsters for generations to come can not only dream of going to university but can go to university irrespective of the circumstances of their birth.”

But the Deputy Prime Minister acknowledged that many backbenchers would oppose the measures, including party president Tim Farron.
Ministerial aides will not be disciplined for choosing to abstain.

But aides to the leader could not guarantee last night that a majority of the party’s 57 MPs would support the measures in the Commons – meaning the vote could be tight.

There could also be a minor Tory rebellion with former shadow home secretary David Davis saying he will be voting against the rise over concerns about the impact on social mobility.

The issue has presented the biggest test yet for the coalition, with many Lib Dems uneasy about breaking an explicit pre-election pledge to oppose tuition fee rise.

But Mr Farron has confirmed he will enter the ‘No’ lobby, and former leaders Charles Kennedy and Menzies Campbell could follow suit.

Ministers have tried to shore up support for the university funding package by unveiling £150 million of help, which could see fees waived for one or two years for 18,000 of the poorest students.