One of the organizations at the forefront of the fight against the World Trade Organisations' planed GATS programme (General Agreement on Trade in Services), people and planet has produced a major report outling how the proposal will effect higher education in the UK, and across the world. GATS will not only ensure the global privatization of education, but also health services, utilities and national parks, or as they say 'Anything you can't drop on your foot'
In Summary, it says
"Current negotiations to expand the General Agreement on Trade in Services could seriously damage UK Higher Education. Excessively market-oriented, this global trade treaty threatens the financial viability, quality, ideals and character of UK Higher Education."
"Its far-reaching rules are inflexible, effectively irreversible and backed up by the threat of trade sanctions. These binding rules are likely to be extended to cover UK Higher Education in the near future. In a world in which higher education is already undergoing rapid restructuring, GATS offers few gains, while posing grave risks for universities, academics and students."
"Despite reassurances from GATS proponents that all 'public services' are exempt from the agreement, our exhaustive analysis shows this exemption to be highly ambiguous and of questionable value. It is unlikely to protect UK Higher Education - by which we mean publicly funded, degree-awarding institutions."
"In fact it seems more likely that UK Higher Education will become an important bargaining chip in these high-stakes negotiations. Several World Trade Organisation members have already formally requested Higher Education GATS commitments from their trading partners. UK Higher Education could well soon be facing the full force of far-reaching GATS rules. It is important that the Higher Education community understands what this will mean."
The report authors of the report, Jess Worth and Steven Kelk believe there are six main ways GATS will affect UK Higher Education:
1. Restructure UKHE funding
a) Reduce public funding available to UKHE or eliminate public funding altogether
b) Greatly increase pressure to sacrifice 'economically non-viable' activities. Loss of revenues from lucrative courses and loss of savings from cost-effective courses
'Unprofitable' courses and departments vulnerable to closure, which is already happening.
2. Weaken quality
3. Prevent government from regulating in the public interest
4. Undermine co-operative internationalisation
5. Affect academics, accelerating commodification,
eroding employment conditions and constraining academic freedom
6. Affect students by introducing a dynamic towards higher fees, affecting access and equality and
threatening the educational experience, all of which are already happening.
In fact, most of this is already happening. To see the full report (in pdf) Click Here, or to see the executive summary (also in pdf, but only four pages) Click Here
People and Planet will also be running the Shared Planet 2002 event over the weekend of 2-3rd November at the University of Warwick. Experts will talk about the global issues that matter, with guest speakers including Mark Thomas, George Monbiot, Caroline Lucas MEP, campaigners from the third world and workshops hosted by organisations including Oxfam, Christian Aid, Friends of the Earth, Greenpeace, The Refugee Council and CND as well as by experienced grassroots activists. You'll get your chance to be a better activist too with workshops aimed at developing the campaigning skills you need to make change in workshops on everything from Media strategy to Running a Fair Trade Cafe, from Non-violent Direct Action to Street Theatre. Tickets cost £16 and you'll need a sleeping bag, roll mat and some food, as that covers crash accomodation for Saturday night.
GATS will be just one of the issues covered as will other unjust world trade rules, climate change and the global arms trade. Although exactly who will turn up, there will be the chance to put your questions to representatives of government and big business in our "Question Time" panel debate.
For more information and to book, go to http://www.peopleandplanet.org/sharedplanet
