Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if her Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a publicly funded model of higher education with reduced reliance on individual debt financing.

The higher education (HE) sector needs a secure financial footing. After seven years of frozen fee caps under the previous government, the government took the difficult decision to increase maximum tuition fee limits for the 2025/26 academic year by 3.1%, in line with the forecast rate of inflation.  We also recognise the impact that the cost-of-living crisis has had on students, and are increasing maximum maintenance loans for living costs for the 2025/26 academic year by 3.1%, in line with the forecast rate of inflation.

Student loans have significant protections for borrowers and are subsidised by the government. For lower earners, who will not repay much of their loan, any outstanding loan balance, including interest built up, will be written off at the end of the loan term. This write-off is the government’s subsidy, and it is a deliberate investment in our people and the economy.

The government also provides funding for HE through the Strategic Priorities Grant (SPG) to support teaching and students in HE, including expensive-to-deliver subjects, students at risk of discontinuing their studies, and world-leading specialist providers. The total recurrent SPG funding to be distributed by the Office for Students for the 2024/25 academic year is £1,426 million.