Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions she has had with universities on the potential impact of the rise of employer national insurance contributions on projects they fund or sponsor; stratified by individual university since July 2024.

As my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, set out in the Autumn Budget 2024, raising the revenue required to fund public services and restore economic stability requires difficult decisions on tax, which is why this government is asking employers to contribute more. We strongly believe that this is the fairest choice to help fund the NHS and wider national priorities.

Higher education providers are independent of government and as such are responsible for managing their own budgets and business models. All providers must continue to adapt to uncertainties and financial risks.

This government is committed to creating a secure future for our world-leading higher education sector. The Office for Students' (OfS) refocusing on financial sustainability and the difficult decision we made to increase tuition fees demonstrate this ambition. We will set out a long-term plan for sector reform this summer.

The department continues to work closely with the OfS in order to understand the ongoing impacts and changing landscape of financial sustainability in the sector.