Asked by: Claudia Webbe (Independent - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will require the Competition and Markets Authority formally assesses the offers made by universities for the 2020-21 student intake.
Answered by Michelle Donelan - Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
The government is committed to transforming the lives of young people so they can go as far as their hard work will take them. Our primary goal has been to ensure that the vast majority of students who wanted to go to university in the 2020-21 academic year could do so. We took steps, with support from the higher education (HE) sector, to increase capacity in the 2020-21 cycle. The end of cycle figures from UCAS for the 2020 cycle show that the percentage of accepted applicants deferring their place only went up by 0.7 percentage points compared to 2019. HE providers, as autonomous bodies, are independent from the government and are responsible for their own recruitment decisions.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is an independent non-ministerial department. The CMA makes its own choices about which cases to take forward based on its published prioritisation principles. The CMA offers guidance on consumer law for HE providers. It has been clear that obligations under the law have not changed during the COVID-19 outbreak and that HE providers must ensure that they are meeting these obligations.
The government has been clear throughout the COVID-19 outbreak that we expect providers to ensure that they are fully complying with their consumer law obligations, including in relation to admissions decisions. The department has regular contact with the CMA, including via the Consumer Benefit Forum, which was formed following the government’s consultation on the Office for Students (OfS) regulatory framework in 2017. Information about the Consumer Benefit Forum is available here: https://www.officeforstudents.org.uk/advice-and-guidance/student-wellbeing-and-protection/student-protection/consumer-benefit-forum/.
On 30 November 2020, the CMA published a re-statement of their views on consumer law in relation to HE. This is available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5fc4bab98fa8f5474e63ab0b/HE_restatement_.pdf.
The CMA had also previously published guidance on consumer contracts, cancellation and refunds affected by COVID-19. This sets out the CMA’s view on how the law operates to help students understand their rights and help providers treat their students fairly. This is available at: https://www.gov.uk/cma-cases/consumer-protection-review-of-higher-education.
Although the CMA is able to take enforcement action where there are breaches of consumer law, the OfS also has an important role, as the regulatory body in HE. All registered HE providers are subject to ongoing OfS conditions of registration relating to student protection and consumer law. The OfS is also responsible for ensuring that HE providers comply with their registration requirements.
The OfS does not get involved in individual student complaints, as that is for the relevant HE provider and possibly the Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education. Students can, however, notify the OfS of issues that may be of regulatory interest to it. These are called ‘notifications’. The OfS uses this information as part of its regulatory monitoring activity and to keep HE providers under review to ensure that they comply with the ongoing conditions of registration. The OfS has produced a guide for students to support them in this process, which is available here: https://www.officeforstudents.org.uk/publications/office-for-students-notifications/.
Asked by: Claudia Webbe (Independent - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of forgiving student debt accrued during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Michelle Donelan - Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
This has been a very difficult time for students, and the government is working with the higher education (HE) sector to make sure all reasonable efforts are being made to enable students to continue their studies. We thank all HE staff for their tireless work to ensure that young people do not have to put their lives or their academic journeys on hold.
The government’s clear and stated expectation is that universities should maintain the quality and quantity of tuition and should seek to ensure that all students, regardless of their background, have the resources to study remotely.
Universities are autonomous and responsible for setting their own fees within maximum fee limits set by regulations. The government is committed to a sustainable HE funding model that supports high quality provision, meets the skills needs of the country and maintains the world-class reputation of UK HE. We recognise that tuition fees must continue to represent value for money for students and taxpayers, both during the COVID-19 outbreak and afterwards.
The government has already announced that the maximum tuition fee cap will remain at £9,250 for the 2021/22 academic year, in respect of standard full-time courses at approved (fee cap) HE providers. We also intend to freeze the maximum tuition fee caps for the 2022/23 academic year to deliver better value for students and to keep the cost of HE under control (the fifth year in succession that maximum fees have been frozen). Our income-contingent student loan system helps remove financial barriers to study and means that no eligible student needs to pay tuition fees upfront.
The Office for Students, as the regulator for HE providers in England, has made it clear that HE providers must continue to comply with registration conditions relating to quality and academic standards. These standards set out requirements to ensure that courses are high-quality, that all students (both domestic and international) are supported and achieve good outcomes and that standards are protected, regardless of whether a provider is delivering its courses through face-to-face teaching, remote online learning or a combination of both.
Whether or not an individual student is entitled to a refund will depend on the specific contractual arrangements between the HE provider and student. If students have concerns, there is a process in place. They should first raise their concerns with their university. If their concerns remain unresolved, students at providers in England or Wales can ask the Office of the Independent Adjudicator (OIA) for Higher Education to consider their complaint, this is the case for both domestic and international students. The OIA website is available at: https://www.oiahe.org.uk/.
The OfS does not get involved in individual student complaints, as this is for the relevant HE provider and possibly the OIA. Students can, however, notify the OfS of issues that may be of regulatory interest to it. These are called ‘notifications’. The OfS uses this information as part of its regulatory monitoring activity and keep higher education providers under review to ensure that they comply with the ongoing conditions of registration. The OfS has produced a guide for students to support them in this process, which is available here: https://www.officeforstudents.org.uk/publications/office-for-students-notifications/.
The government recognises that in these exceptional circumstances some students may face financial hardship. The department has worked with the OfS to clarify that providers are able to use existing funds, worth around £256 million for the academic year 2020/21, towards hardship support. We have also made an additional £70 million of student hardship funding available to HE providers this financial year. HE providers have flexibility in how they distribute the funding to students, in a way that best prioritises those in greatest need – this is available to all students.
Asked by: Claudia Webbe (Independent - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the finding by the UCL Institute of Education in June 2017 which found that risk of student loan debt deters students from poorer backgrounds from applying to university.
Answered by Michelle Donelan - Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
The government’s approach to student finance ensures that costs are split fairly between borrowers and the taxpayer and has helped more young people from disadvantaged backgrounds go to university than ever before. Data for 2020 shows, there were 25,820 placed English 18-year-old applicants from disadvantaged backgrounds (POLAR Q1), entry rate of 24.0%. Both are the highest on record.
Higher education (HE) providers wishing to charge higher levels fees (£9250) must have an access and participation plan agreed by Office for Students. Plans set out how they will support, including providing financial support, students from disadvantaged backgrounds and under-represented groups to access and successfully participate in HE.
Student finance is available to all eligible students, irrespective of their background and credit history. The current system protects borrowers if they see a reduction in their income. Monthly repayments are linked to income, not to interest rates or the amount borrowed. Repayments are made based on a borrower’s monthly or weekly income, not the interest rate or amount borrowed, and no repayments are made for earnings below the repayment threshold, which is currently equivalent to £26,575 a year for borrowers with a post-2012 loan, rising to £27,295 from 6 April 2021. Borrowers are protected, as their repayments decrease if their income decreases, and stops where income falls below the relevant repayment threshold. Any outstanding debt is written off after 30 years or in line with the terms of their specific loan type, with no detriment to the borrower. This write-off (currently around 50%) is a government subsidy of the cost of HE and is a conscious investment in our people and the skills base of the economy.
Asked by: Claudia Webbe (Independent - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many complaints his Deaprtment has received on the cancellation of tuition fees (a) during the covid-19 outbreak and (b) over the last 10 years.
Answered by Michelle Donelan - Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
This is a difficult and uncertain time for students, but we are working with the sector to make sure all reasonable efforts are being made to enable students to continue their studies.
The government’s expectation is that quality and academic standards must be maintained, and the Office for Students (OfS) has made it clear that all higher education (HE) providers must continue to comply with registration conditions relating to quality and standards.
If students have concerns, there is a process in place. They should first raise their concerns with their higher education provider. If their concerns remain unresolved, students at providers in England or Wales can ask the Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education (OIA) to consider their complaint. The OIA is independent of government, and because of this and the autonomy and independence of HE providers, the government does not become involved in individual student complaints.
The OIA was established in 2005 as an alternative to the courts to consider unresolved student complaints. It is independent of government, providers and students and it is free of charge to students.
The OIA reports the numbers of complaints it has handled during the previous calendar year in its Operating Report and in its Annual Report which is published in the spring each year. The OIA received 2,604 complaints in 2020, which represents a 10% increase on 2019. The OIA has reported that complaints have continued to rise this year, with more than half of them relating to disruption caused by the COVID-19 outbreak.
Many of the complaints the OIA receives are not related to tuition fee refunds although that may be a remedy which the OIA recommends. The OIA publishes, in its Annual Report, the total compensation for students it has recommended. The OIA has also published a number of COVID-19 related case summaries and their outcomes which can be found here: https://www.oiahe.org.uk/resources-and-publications/case-summaries/?keyword=coronavirus&type=&sort=desc.
Asked by: Claudia Webbe (Independent - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of cancelling all student debt.
Answered by Michelle Donelan - Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
Cancelling all student loan debt would have a significant fiscal impact on the economy, and on taxpayers, many of whom may not have benefited directly from higher education (HE), but who would be required to fund this additional public spending.
The latest statistical release, published in December 2020, shows that the value of outstanding loans at the end of March 2020 reached £140 billion: https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/sn01079/.
The government’s approach to student finance ensures that costs are split fairly between borrowers and the taxpayer. This approach has helped more young people from disadvantaged backgrounds go to university than ever before. Taxpayers currently subsidise around 50% of the cost of HE, which is a conscious investment in the skills capacity of the economy.
We believe that it is right that students should contribute to the cost of their HE and that this contribution should be linked to their income. Monthly repayments are linked to income and not to interest rates or the amount borrowed. Repayments are made at 9% of amounts earned over the relevant repayment threshold. The repayment threshold is currently equivalent to £26,575 a year for borrowers with a post-2012 loan, rising to £27,295 from 6 April 2021. Borrowers are protected, as their repayments decrease if their income decreases, and stop where income falls below the relevant repayment threshold. Any outstanding debt is written off after 30 years or in line with the terms of the borrower’s specific loan type, with no detriment to the borrower.