Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will provide the number and rate of suspensions and permanent exclusions, disaggregated by school type (state-funded primary, state-funded secondary and state-funded special) for (a) 'Gypsy/Roma' pupils, (b) 'Traveller of Irish heritage' pupils and (c) all pupils in (i) the 2023/24 academic year and (ii) the 2024/25 academic year.
Answered by Paul Waugh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Statistics on suspensions and permanent exclusions by school type and ethnicity can be found in the following publication, published on 9 July: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/suspensions-and-permanent-exclusions-in-england/2024-25.
The publication has a “Create table” function. The table at this link has been produced using this function, showing the number and rates of suspensions and permanent exclusions by school type for pupils of Gypsy/Roma, Traveller of Irish heritage and all pupils, broken down by phase, for the 2023/24 and 2024/25 academic years. This information can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/219fd1f5-a660-4517-8caa-08df25240285
Caution is recommended when interpreting the data for Gypsy/Roma and Traveller of Irish Heritage children due to small population sizes.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the economic impact of international students on the UK economy when developing fiscal policy in relation to the higher education sector.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The International Education Strategy confirms our commitment to welcoming international students who meet the requirements for UK study, recognising their contribution to the sector, society and the UK's global reputation.
The latest estimates from the department show that UK education-related exports and transnational education activity generated £36.7 billion in revenue in 2024. Higher education was the largest component, accounting for £26.6 billion (72.4%) of total education export revenue. Of this, £23.9 billion (89.9%) was attributable to the tuition fees and living expenditure of international students, with an average contribution of around £33,400 per student. International students supported economic activity across all parts of the UK, generating an estimated £20.3 billion in England, £2.5 billion in Scotland, £0.7 billion in Wales and £0.4 billion in Northern Ireland.
Further information about UK revenues from education can be found at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/uk-revenue-from-education-related-exports-and-transnational-education-activity/2024.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of Plan 2 interest accumulation on funded doctoral researchers.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Post-study, the interest on Plan 2 loans ranges from Retail Price Index (RPI) to RPI plus 3% depending on a borrower’s earnings. For borrowers who are successful in gaining a funded doctoral research position it is likely that their funding will be below the lower interest threshold, meaning that the applicable interest rate is RPI only.
It is also likely that such borrowers will be earning under the repayment threshold, meaning that they are not required to make any repayments to their Plan 2 loan while undertaking their doctoral research.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has made an estimate of the potential cost to the public purse of reducing Plan 2 interest during PhD funded research.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Post-study, the interest on Plan 2 loans ranges from RPI to RPI+3% depending on a borrower’s earnings. For borrowers who are successful in gaining a funded doctoral research position it is likely that their funding will be below the lower interest threshold, meaning that the applicable interest rate is RPI only.
No estimate has been made relating to the cost to the public purse of reducing interest on Plan 2 loans during PhD funded research.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of the International Student Levy.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government announced in September 2025 that it would reintroduce targeted, means-tested maintenance grants for students studying courses aligned with the industrial strategy. These granted will be funded through an international student levy and will help students from the lowest income families enter and succeed in higher education (HE).
The funding raised through the levy on providers will be fully reinvested in England’s higher education and skills system. It will fund maintenance grants to students, support progression through the post-16 system and contribute to wider skills provision.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the Schools White Paper, what progress her Department has made on further embedding education on legal rights, the justice system and the rule of law across the school curriculum, including through the expansion of earlier citizenship education in primary schools covering law and rights.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The independent Curriculum and Assessment Review, published in November 2025, recommended that all pupils are taught citizenship content at primary as a statutory part of the curriculum, and that a new programme of study should ensure that pupils develop an understanding of rules and laws, why they are important, who makes them and the consequences of not following them.
My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, is considering the recommendations of the Curriculum and Assessment Review in line with the government’s ambition to transform technical education from age 14 to 16.
The department expects there will be a public consultation on the proposals for the curriculum and assessment system in due course.
Through the existing national curriculum for citizenship, pupils are taught about the nature of rules and laws and the justice and legal systems, as well as different sources of law and how the law helps society deal with complex problems.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the International Student Levy on the UK’s ability to attract international postgraduate research students and the consequential impact this would have on the ambitions set out in the UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Higher education (HE) providers are independent from government and are responsible for managing their own finances, including any impact from the International Student Levy (ISL). To support providers’ financial planning, the levy will be introduced in 2028/29 and paid one year in arrears, with a 220-student allowance applying per provider per year.
We have also announced tuition fee cap increases in line with forecast inflation for the 2025/26, 2026/27 and 2027/28 academic years, and will legislate, when parliamentary time allows, to increase caps automatically for future years. Over the next five years, these uplifts could generate an additional £6 billion for HE providers, significantly outweighing the currently projected less than £1 billion levy cost.
ISL revenue will fund the reintroduction of maintenance grants for disadvantaged students studying level 4 to 6 courses aligned with the government’s missions and the Industrial Strategy.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether the proposed International Student Levy aligns with the Government’s International Education Strategy and its target for growth in education exports.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
As outlined in the International Education Strategy, the UK aims to both grow the value of education exports to £40 billion per year by 2030, whilst ensuring the sustainable recruitment of high-quality students, in line with the Immigration White Paper.
International higher education (HE) students are only one part of the UK’s wider international education offer, which includes education exports and transnational education provision across the entire sector, from early years to schools, colleges and universities.
Introducing a £925 flat-fee International Student Levy on English HE providers will support sustainable international student recruitment, whilst ensuring students contribute to the communities where they study, with the levy revenue funding the reintroduction of targeted maintenance grants for disadvantaged students.
The UK’s world‑class HE sector will continue to offer an attractive and fulfilling experience to students from around the globe.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has considered alternative funding models for the reintroduction of maintenance grants, other than revenues raised through the proposed International Student Levy.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department is reintroducing targeted, means-tested maintenance grants of up to £1,000 per year, funded by a levy on international student fees, with both being introduced in the 2028/29 academic year.
This will ensure that the proceeds from international student fees benefit domestic learners, furthering our national opportunity mission, and creating stronger economic links between both home and international students.
This government is clear that it welcomes and values the contributions to our society, economy and higher education providers made by overseas students who want to come to the UK. But it is right to ensure that the financial benefit these students provide also helps our most disadvantaged home students.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the proposed international student levy on the financial sustainability of higher education institutions in the context of the Office for Students' press release entitled Significant challenges continue to face higher education finances – with nearly half facing deficits in 2025-26, published on 20 November 2025.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The International Student Levy will require higher education (HE) providers to pay £925 per international student per year. This is broadly equivalent to a 4.5% fee, reduced from 6% proposed in the Immigration White Paper. Levy revenue will be fully reinvested into higher education and skills, including to reintroduce targeted maintenance grants.
To mitigate disproportionate impacts on smaller providers, a 220-student allowance will apply to each provider per year. The levy will be introduced in 2028/29 and paid one year in arrears to support financial planning.
An impact analysis published in November 2025 estimated that, in isolation, the levy would result in around £270 million in income losses to the sector in its first year. This impact analysis is accessible at: https://consult.education.gov.uk/international-student-levy-unit/international-student-levy/supporting_documents/international-student-levy-impact-analysispdf.
We have also announced a tuition fee cap increase in line with forecast inflation for the 2025/26, 2026/27 and 2027/28 academic years, and will legislate, when parliamentary time allows, to increase caps automatically for future years. Over the next five years, these uplifts could generate an additional £6 billion for HE providers, significantly outweighing the currently projected less than £1 billion levy cost.