Sale of Student Loans: Regulation
Debate between Barry Sheerman and Jim Cunningham(7 years, 9 months ago)
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Mr Cunningham
I agree with my hon. Friend. Frankly, retrospective law is always bad law. The three previous sales were of mortgage-style student loans. There have been no sales of income-contingent loans. In 2013, the Government announced that the final sale of outstanding loans had been made to Erudio Student Loans for £160 million. There have been problems with those loans and a number of complaints about their handling. Can the Minister guarantee that the loans we are discussing will not be resold to overseas buyers? What mechanisms will be put in place to protect students?
Mr Barry Sheerman (Huddersfield) (Lab/Co-op)
My hon. Friend knows of my interest in this issue. I have only one university in my constituency, the University of Huddersfield. My students, too, fear that the sale is an ideological fix. We heard this morning in Justice questions that the Government are selling off a young offenders prison—it is ideology that is behind this. Does he agree that we should have an independent commission to look at the issue? I have never seen a compelling economic case for the sale.
Mr Cunningham
I totally agree with my hon. Friend. It is about time we stopped social engineering with education. We are getting to a point where we want some sort of commission established. I hope the Minister will announce that when he responds to the debate.
Will the personal details of students be secure? How will repayment work for European Union students? How will Welsh students be affected? The National Union of Students has consistently expressed concerns that such a sale is not in the interests of students, graduates or taxpayers. What implications will the sale have for students?