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		</div><p><a href="http://londonglossy.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/lib-dems-told-to-bite-fees-bullet.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-full" title="Business Secretary Vince Cable has been urged to abandon his decision to abstain over tuition fees rises" src="http://londonglossy.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/min-lib-dems-told-to-bite-fees-bullet.jpg" alt="Business Secretary Vince Cable has been urged to abandon his decision to abstain over tuition fees rises"/></a></p>
<p>Liberal Democrat MPs should be told to &#8220;bite the bullet&#8221; and rally behind tuition fee rises, the party&#8217;s former higher education spokesman said in an appeal for stronger leadership.</p>
<p>Lord Willis called on Business Secretary Vince Cable to abandon his offer to abstain on his own policy in a Commons vote in an attempt to prevent a party split.</p>
<p>Some Lib Dems are determined to vote against the proposals &#8211; raising the cap on fees from £3,375 to £9,000 &#8211; in keeping with a pledge signed during the general election to oppose any increase.</p>
<p>Party leader Nick Clegg has declined to say how he will vote despite publicly backing the policy, amid intense efforts to find a way to maintain a united front on the issue.</p>
<p>Under the coalition deal with the Tories, Lib Dem MPs are allowed to abstain if they cannot accept proposals on higher education funding &#8211; an exemption Mr Cable signalled he was willing to use in the interests of party unity.</p>
<p>His stance was condemned by Labour, which said it was &#8220;outrageous&#8221; for the minister in charge of a policy to contemplate not voting for it &#8211; a highly unusual departure from the convention of collective ministerial responsibility.</p>
<p>Lord Willis, a former party whip who retired as an MP in May, told BBC Radio 4&#8217;s Today programme: &#8220;The reality is that we either bite the bullet and believe that the &#8230; proposals &#8230; are the ones to take us forward in terms of higher education or we don&#8217;t.</p>
<p>&#8220;They do take us forward and it is time the Liberal Democrats now simply got on board and said &#8216;Well, let us back them, let us sell them&#8217;. I would like Nick to say that and I would also like Vince to say that.</p>
<p>&#8220;I hope Vince will reconsider that position (on abstaining).&#8221;</p>
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