Support for the Green party is surging both in London and across the country, while Labour’s poor performance in government continues to drive supporters away.
However, as many young voters may have limited experience in governance, it can be tricky to understand what actually sets the Greens apart from the rest, beyond their environmental policy.
In this article, we’ll show you what support for the Greens looks like in the capital, and just as importantly, what they have to say about students in their manifesto.
The Rise of the Greens
via @greenpartyzack and @thegreenparty on Instagram
Councillors across London are defecting from Labour to the Greens, claiming that Labour’s refusal to take a ‘principled stance on Gaza’ or ‘adopting divisive anti-immigration rhetoric’ pushed them to defect.
Additionally, Labour’s failures to address the ongoing cost-of-living crisis has supposedly also dissuaded many.
Data from a YouGov poll has shown that remaining Labour voters actually trust the Greens more on topics like environment, poverty, and even keeping promises.
What does this mean for students?
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According to polling for ITV News, the Greens are the most popular party amongst 18-25 year olds. But how do Green policies aim to affect the student population?
Firstly: Student Finance. The Greens want to end tuition fees for student undertaking higher education, contrary to Labour’s decision to increase them. For the academic year 2025/26, fees for home students in England rose to £9,535, with the Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson recently announcing further tuition fee increases in line with inflation.
In line with the Green party manifesto, this would hopefully be scrapped, making higher education more appealing for young people. The Greens also aim to restore maintenance grants, which would reduce the amount of repayable loans that students need to pay.
And for you year abroad students, there’s good news.
The Green Party sets to rejoin the Erasmus programme, which offers funding and support for students who want to study abroad. Unlike the Turing Scheme, the Erasmus programme offers funding to everyone, and also waives tuition fees at students’ host unis. The initiative to rejoin the Erasmus programme is closely linked to the Greens’ plans to return to the free movement of people between the UK and the EU.
To support international students to the UK, the Greens manifesto outline their plan for students to bring their family members with them. This right is currently restricted to postgraduates on research courses or students on courses with government-funded scholarships.
All of these party policies shows how the Greens would impact student lives, if they had the power to do so. Higher education would be made more financially accessible for home students, and British universities would be made more accessible for international students.
But of course, before voting, it is essential to look through each party’s manifesto in order to make an informed decision on which party you’d most like to support.
Featured image via The Green Party website
