Asked by: Tom Gordon (Liberal Democrat - Harrogate and Knaresborough)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what information her Department holds on the number of student loan borrowers in (a) England, (b) Wales and (c) Scotland whose outstanding loan balance increased despite making regular repayments, broken down by repayment plan, in each of the last five years.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The table below shows the number of borrowers funded by Student Finance England whose loans had become liable for repayment and whose outstanding balance increased despite making regular repayments, because interest added during the financial year exceeded the amount repaid. The figures are rounded to the nearest thousand borrower and are shown by repayment plan for each of the last five financial years. A borrower may hold a loan of more than one type and therefore may be included in more than one plan category. Any outstanding balance, including accrued interest, is cancelled at the end of the loan term, with no detriment to the borrower.
| Financial Year | ||||
Repayment Plan | 2021/22 | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 | 2025/26 |
Plan 1 | 116,000 | 272,000 | 484,000 | 431,000 | 340,000 |
Plan 2 | 628,000 | 971,000 | 1,302,000 | 1,538,000 | 1,592,000 |
Plan 3 | 75,000 | 113,000 | 152,000 | 167,000 | 158,000 |
Plan 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Over the past five years, the total number of borrowers with Plan 2 and 3 repayments plans with loans which have become liable to repay has increased each year.
For this analysis, a borrower is considered to have made regular repayments if they have made at least four repayments during the financial year. This may include borrowers who ceased making repayments, or who ceased being liable to repay, part-way through the year. Fewer borrowers would have seen their balance increase while making repayments in all twelve months.
Figures are for borrowers funded by Student Finance England who were domiciled in England when they took out their loan and studied at a UK university, including those in the devolved administrations. Borrowers may now be living anywhere in the UK. Education is a devolved matter and the devolved governments are responsible for providing equivalent figures for borrowers who were domiciled in their nation at the point of loan application.
Asked by: Tom Gordon (Liberal Democrat - Harrogate and Knaresborough)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she intends to further the prevention agenda as set out by the ten-year health plan.
Answered by James Frith - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
I refer the Hon. Member to the statement made to the House by my Rt. Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State of Health and Social Care, on 9 September.
Asked by: Tom Gordon (Liberal Democrat - Harrogate and Knaresborough)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what her department’s priorities are for this parliamentary session.
Answered by James Frith - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
I refer the Hon. Member to the statement made to the House by my Rt. Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State of Health and Social Care, on 9 September.
Asked by: Tom Gordon (Liberal Democrat - Harrogate and Knaresborough)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has considered options for replacing Stamp Duty Land Tax with an alternative that creates fewer disincentives to move home.
Answered by James Murray - Financial Secretary to the Treasury and Paymaster General
The Chancellor makes decisions on tax policy at fiscal events, and does not routinely comment on proposals.
Asked by: Tom Gordon (Liberal Democrat - Harrogate and Knaresborough)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of reducing Stamp Duty Land Tax on residential property transactions on the economy.
Answered by James Murray - Financial Secretary to the Treasury and Paymaster General
The Chancellor makes decisions on tax policy at fiscal events, and does not routinely comment on proposals.
Asked by: Tom Gordon (Liberal Democrat - Harrogate and Knaresborough)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will review the structure of Stamp Duty Land Tax to support mobility throughout the housing market.
Answered by James Murray - Financial Secretary to the Treasury and Paymaster General
The Chancellor makes decisions on tax policy at fiscal events, and does not routinely comment on proposals.
Asked by: Tom Gordon (Liberal Democrat - Harrogate and Knaresborough)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking with the Financial Conduct Authority to make mortgage advice and guidance available earlier in the journey towards homeownership.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government is committed to supporting homeownership and continues to work closely with the independent Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
The FCA is currently undertaking a wide-ranging review of the mortgage market, including how mortgage regulation can better support first-time buyers and other underserved consumers, and expects to report back later this year.
The UK benefits from a competitive mortgage market and a large, well-established mortgage intermediary sector, through which prospective first-time buyers can already seek advice and guidance at an early stage. I would encourage anyone thinking about buying a home to contact a mortgage broker, who can help them understand their options and any steps they can take to become mortgage-ready.
Asked by: Tom Gordon (Liberal Democrat - Harrogate and Knaresborough)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of local authorities' capacity to deliver cross-pavement electric vehicle charging schemes.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government made up to £25 million available to local authorities in England to support thousands of residents without off-street parking to conveniently charge their vehicles at home.
Local authorities are supported through the Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI) Support Body, which provides technical, commercial and management expertise to help local authorities develop and deliver their electric vehicle infrastructure projects. Local authorities have also received capability funding to help secure dedicated in-house expertise to plan and deliver on local electric vehicle infrastructure strategies.
Asked by: Tom Gordon (Liberal Democrat - Harrogate and Knaresborough)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of local government reorganisation, including the creation of new unitary authorities and combined authorities, on the delivery of electric vehicle charging infrastructure schemes at local level.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Local EV Infrastructure (LEVI) Fund supports local authorities to install at least 100,000 chargers. At Budget 2025, the Government announced £100 million further resource funding for local authorities to support delivery. Local Authorities in receipt of LEVI allocations update the Department for Transport on a quarterly basis, including progress and spend on electric vehicle infrastructure installations.
Asked by: Tom Gordon (Liberal Democrat - Harrogate and Knaresborough)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to ensure funding allocated to combined authorities for infrastructure schemes, including electric vehicle charging, is passed on to and spent by constituent local authorities in a timely manner.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Local EV Infrastructure (LEVI) Fund supports local authorities to install at least 100,000 chargers. At Budget 2025, the Government announced £100 million further resource funding for local authorities to support delivery. Local Authorities in receipt of LEVI allocations update the Department for Transport on a quarterly basis, including progress and spend on electric vehicle infrastructure installations.