AS revealed in the Queen's Speech, Tony Blair is determined to press on with the introduction of top-up fees for students to finance the target of half of all school leavers going on to university.

This despite the overwhelming opposition from his own ranks and the fact that half of all school-leavers receive fewer than five GCSEs at A* to C grade, and that all other countries with high levels of undergraduate students have courses of four or more years to take account of the much broader ability range.

A proclaimed justification is that graduates have greater earning power so they can afford to repay the investment in their education.

I have a modest proposal; those who gain most from higher education should pay the most.

Those graduating with an ordinary degree would contribute £1,000 a year of tuition; those receiving a third class degree £2,000, a lower second £3,000, an upper second £4,000, and a first £5,000.

Those who fail to graduate would pay nothing. This could easily be achieved by graduates paying back a proportion of the income they would not otherwise have earned without their education at a rate of, say, 22 per cent. Those who earn significantly more could pay back 40 per cent of that additional income.

Dr Duncan Campbell,

Albemarle Road, York.

...ON university top-up fees, how about if the £250 which the Government plans to award to every baby were to be invested in that child's name, to reach a reasonable amount by the time the child reaches university age?

This would make more sense than allowing a young person freedom to spend the cash accrued as they will when so many feel the bare necessities of life are designer clothes, foreign holidays and cars.

Without the need for the family to find extra cash, they would have a nest-egg towards the most important investment they could make at that time - their education and the key to a better life.

Heather Causnett,

Escrick Park Gardens,

Escrick, York.

...ON a recent business trip I noted that the caf chain I stopped at concentrated on customer service - by reducing opening hours. The airline I later used was increasing customer choice by allowing travellers to pay for their own meals.

Then last week the Government confirmed they are widening access to universities by tripling student fees.

Have any other readers examples of the marketing version of "less is more"?

Clive Tiney,

Towthorpe Road,

Haxby,

York.

Updated: 10:58 Wednesday, December 03, 2003