Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department has taken to ensure the planned sale of student loans with a face value of £3.7 billion represents value for money.

The government only sells assets when it can secure value for money for taxpayers from doing so.

The government is selling a first tranche of the pre-2012 English student loan book through a securitisation, which is designed to appeal to a wide range of investors.

Throughout the sale process, the government has regularly assessed whether a sale would represent value for money for the taxpayer, using guidance issued by HM Treasury based on the Green Book.

Further information on the sale arrangements will be presented in a report to Parliament pursuant to section 4 of the Sale of Student Loans Act 2008.