He defended his position after being accused of hypocrisy by a student leader and having his stance challenged by Labour’s Scottish parliamentary candidate for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross, John McKendrick.

Pete Harris, who represents Edinburgh University Students’ Association, said he was stunned by what he claimed was the Lib Dem MSP’s “flip-flop attitude” on the matter.

“The barefaced cheek of the Liberal Democrats never fails to amaze me,” Mr Harris said. “We’ve been lobbying Jamie Stone for months to vote against the introduction of top-up fees for medical students but he failed to do so. Now he has the cheek to suggest in the chamber that he’s against them.”

Meanwhile, Mr McKendrick said: “Jamie Stone must now make his position clear - does he support his party and its attempts to raise fees for university students or not?

“It is simply not good enough that he is seen to do one thing and then says some thing completely different.”

The Lib Dem Deputy First Minister Nicol Stephen is being lobbied to scrap the measure, brought in by his predecessor Jim Wallace. The accusations against Mr Stone came after he criticised First Minister Jack McConnell for failing to answer his questions about top-up fees in the Scottish Parliament.

The Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross MSP expressed concern that the Westminster Government had decided to increase university top-up fees in England and Wales to almost £3000 a year. Mr Stone - the Liberal Democrats’ spokesman for enterprise and lifelong learning - wanted an assurance from Mr McConnell that Scottish students would not be burdened with additional debt to make up any resulting funding gap.

But he was later accused of being hypocritical because he supports a move to in crease top-up fees for non-Scottish university students doing degrees in Scotland.

Mr Stone responded to the criticism and pointed out that he is not in favour of top-up fees but, because they were increased for students in England and Wales, he feels something has to be done to protect their counterparts in Scotland.

He explained that if no measures were taken Scottish universities would receive less funding while Scottish students could lose their places to students escaping from the higher fees south of the border.

Mr Stone acknowledged the increase in top-up fees will apply to Scottish students but stressed the Scottish Executive will pay the bill.

He maintained there is no contradiction in his position. “We can’t prevent what is done at Westminster but have to take measures to protect places for Scottish students and to provide additional funding for our universities,” he said.

“If they are unable to compete with the English establishments then there could be a brain drain south.

“We must act to protect Scottish students who could face pressure to get a place in Scottish universities, as more English students consider coming to Scotland to take advantage of fees that could be £1800 less than in England. That is why the Scottish Parliament will vote to increase fees to non-Scottish-domiciled students. Scottish-domiciled students won’t pay fees, no matter what level they are set at.”

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