Higher Education: Financial Sustainability

Lord Giddens Excerpts

Monday 15th December 2014 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Williams of Trafford]

My Lords, the cap will be lifted in 2016, widening access as far as possible. In fact, disadvantaged students now make up 17% of the total, which is a record level.

[Lord Giddens (Lab)]

My Lords, as someone who has worked in higher education all my life, I was very surprised by the Minister’s response to this report, which is a devastating critique of government policy on higher education. The report shows that it is unsustainable and that commercialism is undermining academic values and it indicates quite clearly that a change of course is absolutely necessary. Can the Minister say what change of course this would be and not just go into defensive mode about it?

[Baroness Williams of Trafford]

My Lords, I do not think I am going into defensive mode. I reiterate the view of the OECD, which is a widely respected body, on the sustainability of higher education finance. Like the noble Earl, Lord Howe, I have forgotten the second part of the question. I remember—since the report was published, as the Chancellor set out in the Autumn Statement, we have in fact announced that postgraduate loan-based funding would be available from 2016. We have addressed some of the concerns within the report.