Student Loans

Robin Swann Excerpts

Wednesday 18th March 2026 Commons Chamber

[Laura Trott]

I will not. When the hon. Gentleman tried to intervene on me recently, he accused me of jumping on a bandwagon about rape gangs, so he will forgive me for not taking another intervention from him.

Too often, students are receiving minimal face-to-face teaching, limited supervision and a university experience that falls far short of what was promised. This is not a fair system and it is not a sustainable one either.

[Robin Swann (South Antrim) (UUP)]

The right hon. Lady says that the system is unfair. Does she agree that charging interest rates during maternity and paternity leave is also unfair? It disadvantages people in the workplace, especially women, who have worked hard to get into progressive careers through university education, and they are penalised at that point.

[Laura Trott]

I am glad that the hon. Gentleman raises that point. I totally agree with him that it is something that needs to be looked into and fixed.

As I have mentioned, we know that 10 times as many young people want an apprenticeship at 18 as there are places available. The demand is there, but the places are not. To me, it makes complete sense to move from funding dead-end courses at universities to giving young people the opportunity to do an apprenticeship that will get them into a job, and they will emerge from that apprenticeship with no debt. We want fundamental change to the system so that at 18, young people have a choice between a high-quality university place, an apprenticeship or going into work. That is a Conservative choice.

What is Labour’s response to that proposal? Last weekend, the Government announced that they will compensate for some of the mess that they created in the form of youth unemployment when they hiked up employer national insurance contributions, but they are robbing Peter to pay Paul—exactly the sort of economic thinking that we have come to expect. They are punishing employers with a jobs tax, which one of the Cabinet finally admitted this week has caused a huge spike in unemployment, and they are giving back £3,000, but only to those who have been on universal credit for six months. Fiddling with a system that needs fundamental reform and clearing up the mess of the Chancellor’s Budget is almost a full-time job for this Government.

The Conservatives are the only party putting forward a serious plan to help young people, whether by abolishing stamp duty for first-time buyers or through our new deal.

--- Later in debate ---

[Georgia Gould]

My hon. Friend makes an incredibly important point. We need to open up access to apprenticeships. That is why the Government are making this investment, and it is why we have set that ambitious target for young people to go to university and to access apprenticeships.

[Robin Swann]

On that point, does the Minister agree that there is another way? The Open University also allows people to earn and learn at the same time. The situation is not as simple as university or apprenticeship. There is a middle way and, as a former graduate of the Open University, I encourage the Government to support it.

[Georgia Gould]

We are committed to opening up those routes to lifelong learning, and we are setting out plans on that. I welcome that intervention.

Oral Answers to Questions

Robin Swann Excerpts

Monday 21st July 2025 Commons Chamber

[Stephen Morgan]

We are maintaining the support available to children to ensure that there is reasonable support in place, and providing more funding to local authorities. This Government are committed to breaking down the barriers to opportunity so that every child can succeed and thrive, and that is what we are getting on and delivering.

[Robin Swann (South Antrim) (UUP)]

5. What steps her Department is taking to help ensure that post-16 education provides the skills necessary to support the economy.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Education (Janet Daby)]

I would like to take this opportunity to celebrate the great gains that the Labour Government have made through our plan for change. Since entering power, we have cut red tape, tilted the system towards young people and committed unprecedented investment for our school system. We are going further and faster with our post-16 education and skills strategy.

[Robin Swann]

The apprenticeship levy is collected equally across the United Kingdom, but unfortunately it comes back to Northern Ireland under the Barnett consequential. Will the Minister look at an option for a system in which those employers who contribute to the apprenticeship levy can draw it back directly to support apprentices employed in their companies?

[Janet Daby]

I thank the hon. Member for his question and his thoughtfulness regarding the levy and its operation. As he is fully aware, skills are a devolved matter and funding in the devolved Administration remains the responsibility of that Government. We will continue to engage with the devolved Administrations as we develop the levy-funded growth and skills offer for England.

Oral Answers to Questions

Robin Swann Excerpts

Monday 28th April 2025 Commons Chamber

[Bridget Phillipson]

I could not agree more, and I pay tribute to my hon. Friend and the other members of her Committee for the important work that they are doing through their inquiry on this matter. We look forward to hearing more from them in due course.

My hon. Friend is entirely right: just days before the local elections, the comments of the hon. Member for Clacton (Nigel Farage) will have sent shivers down the spines of so many parents throughout the country. His comments were completely irresponsible and totally wrong. This Government are focusing on better outcomes for all children, including those with SEND.

[Robin Swann (South Antrim) (UUP)]

3. What steps she is taking to ensure that non-levy paying employers receive apprenticeship funding.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Education (Janet Daby)]

Labour is transforming the Tories’ failed apprenticeship levy into a growth and skills levy. The Government offer a range of support to non-levy-paying employers, including assistance with training costs and payments to take on younger apprentices. New foundation apprenticeships in construction will unlock opportunities for up to 10,000 young people. Apprenticeships, participation, achievement and starts have already increased under Labour, and we are going further and faster for growth.

[Robin Swann]

As the Minister will know, employers in Northern Ireland pay substantially into the apprenticeship levy but have no direct access to it. What steps is the Minister taking to enable them to receive direct benefits through the levy, so that we too can enjoy the benefits of which she spoke in her answer when she was having a dig at the Conservative party?

[Janet Daby]

As I am sure the hon. Member knows, skills are a devolved matter, and funding in the devolved Administrations remains the responsibility of those Governments. However, we will continue to engage with them as we deliver the levy-funded growth and skills offer for England.