Barry Sheerman
Main Page: Barry Sheerman (Labour (Co-op) - Huddersfield)
Mr Willetts
Yes. My hon. Friend refers to something that, in many ways, is the equivalent of the pupil premium in schools. The Higher Education Funding Council for England is now consulting on how best to deliver the money in future, but we have made it clear that it is very important to reflect the additional costs that under-represented groups face.
Mr Barry Sheerman (Huddersfield) (Lab/Co-op)
Is the Open university the only happy university at the moment? I note the 10% increase in the number of its students, but what about the rest? Most of the vice-chancellors I talk to are very unhappy about the destabilisation of the sector and cannot see their way forward.
Mr Willetts
The hon. Gentleman does higher education a great disservice. In my experience, vice-chancellors are looking forward to the challenge of attracting students and know that one in four students will be bringing their money to the university that they choose, as we push back the quotas. They also see that in our White Paper we envisage universities having 10% more cash coming to them in four years’ time than they have now.