Liberal Democrat Don Foster said he had not decided how to vote on raising tuition fees – despite strong feelings in Bath
Empty coffee cups are strewn across his desk and the bin is piled high with old sandwich wrappers and discarded leaflets. It has been a busy few weeks for James Huelin, vice-president at the University of Bath students' union.
Huelin organised the union's trip to London for last week's protest – it took three coachloads – and he attracted the attention of photographers by wearing a suit made of pretend banknotes and holding a sign reading: "Do I look like I am made of money?"
Now he is busy answering questions about the National Union of Students' targeting of the city's Liberal Democrat MP, Don Foster, as part of its "decapitation" strategy to oust key figures over the U-turn on tuition fees.
Bath is an unlikely hotbed for student unrest. "Traditionally, student apathy is huge here," said Huelin. "It's cool not to care. But I've been overwhelmed by the anger on tuition fees."
Huelin voted for Foster at the last election, but said he felt a "little embarrassed" now. "I'm feeling disappointed and angry. We feel that Don Foster really doesn't want to go back on his pledge but feels he has to. I hope we can still get him to stick to it."
Huelin supports using the Lib Dems' own "right to recall" initiative, which proposes that a byelection can be called if an MP is judged guilty of serious wrongdoing and 10% of constituents want him removed. "If someone goes for a job interview and makes promises that turn out to be false, then you'd expect to lose that job. MPs have to be answerable to us."
Huelin is not convinced that Foster will fall victim to a "right to recall" initiative – but with students making up a fifth of Bath's population, he feels Foster or his successor could be in trouble at the next election, even though he is defending a majority of almost 12,000.
Chat to almost anyone having a coffee between lectures in the student union buildings in Bath and they express concern over an increase in tuition fees.
Alex Pool, 20, who went on the demonstration in London, said he did not feel that his local MP was listening to him. "The Lib Dems talk about compromise, but this was more than just one more policy – it was a firm pledge. They need to know they can't just go back on such a pledge."
Kerry Arrowsmith, 20, a student in natural sciences, said she probably would not have gone to university if she had been asked to pay £9,000 a year in tuition fees. She felt "cheated" that she had voted Lib Dem at the last election.
Peter Morgan, a 21-year-old pharmacy student, said it was "crazy" that in the future young people taking the same four-year course could leave with a debt of £60,000. "That seems well over the top."
Foster sounds as if he has been almost as busy as Huelin, though he said he did not detect the hostility expressed by the NUS and the Bath students' union towards him and his Lib Dem colleagues (including Stephen Williams, the Bristol West MP, who is also on the NUS hitlist).
Foster told the Guardian he had not yet made up his mind how he would vote on the fees issue, and had been asking Bath people what they thought. At the weekend he took to the streets, knocking on the doors of student digs to ask them what was on their minds. "Not a single one of them raised tuition fees with me until I asked them what they thought I should do," he said. "What became clear is that many people are not aware of the full details contained in the package."
He said deciding how to vote was "incredibly difficult". It would be easy, he claimed, to stick to his pledge to fight tuition fees – but that would put in jeopardy Lib Dem policies that were coming in through the coalition. But Foster insisted he was pleased that students were becoming engaged. "As someone who said that it was a pity students weren't more active, I can hardly complain that students are now campaigning on this issue."
The students' views
Gowri Babu, 19, natural sciences, Bath University I voted Lib Dem. It's horrible that they have changed their mind. They should be held to account.
Kerry Arrowsmith, 20, natural sciences, Bath I voted for Don Foster because of the tuition fees. I feel a bit cheated.
Lee White, 20, pharmacy, Bath If someone like me doing a four-year degree is having to pay £9,000, they'll come out with a £60,000 debt.
Tom Spencer, 22, international security, Bristol University I'm a Lib Dem supporter. I think any government would have done what they are doing.
Ameer Virani, 22, German and Italian, Bristol It looks bad for the Lib Dems. It is hard for them because they are not completely in power.
Caitlin Agnew, 21, English and philosophy, Bristol They have lost the chance of ever getting voted in again.