Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what discussions he has had on proposed changes to the disabled students' allowance.

The Interdepartmental Ministerial Group on Disability, which I attend, has discussed the proposed changes to the Disabled Students Allowance (DSA). The changes should improve the effectiveness of the scheme, and ensure that there is a proper balance between the responsibility of Higher Education Institutions to make reasonable adjustments and a central scheme, the DSA, that provides funding direct to students. The purpose of these allowances is not fundamentally changing.