Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to paragraph 4.10 of the Autumn Budget 2024, published on 30 October 2024, HC 295, what the fiscal effect is of revised launch date of the Lifelong Learning Entitlement.

The Government is committed to delivering the Lifelong Learning Entitlement, which will transform the post-18 student finance system to create a single funding system, to a revised launch date of September 2026 for courses starting in January 2027. The launch has been postponed by a year to ensure that policy and design fully align with this government’s ambitious vision for the future of our skills landscape, as well as to give providers the necessary time to prepare.

The student finance impacts of the revised launch date were scored by the OBR at the Autumn Budget. The Public Sector Net Borrowing impacts of the delay can be found in the policy costings document on page 81:

Policy_Costing_Document_-_Autumn_Budget_2024.pdf

The delay will have a negligible fiscal impact in 2025-26 and 2026-27 and will generate savings of around £10m a year, measured by Public Sector Net Borrowing, for the rest of the scorecard period. This includes the impact of the previous government’s decision to postpone the launch from February to September 2025.