BM 64 – European students oppose the Master’s Degree Loan Guarantee Scheme
As students we demand that the European Parliament and the Council reject the idea of establishing a EU Master’s Degree Loan Guarantee Scheme, as currently stands in the proposal from the European Commission on “Erasmus for all”. We, representative students’ organisations in Europe, demand that the money originally planned to establish the loan scheme, will be directed towards supporting student mobility through grants.
Students do not consider the idea of establishing a European loan guarantee scheme as a feasible one, neither reflecting the needs of students.
We are apalled, that the proposal ignores the potential impact, that such a scheme can bring, such as raising the level of debt among young people or instigating brain drain from less developed regions.
We strongly encourage the European Commision to make neccessary arrangements to strengthen the current Erasmus grant scheme, rather than waste money on unpopular proposals, such as a Loan scheme. On the other hand, the European Commission should encourage the member states to introduce neccessary changes in the legislation to allow full portability of national support services.
In a time of debt crisis and austerity measures the EU should not be encouraging young people to take on more debt.
