Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to figures published by the Higher Education Statistics Agency for 2017-18, what assessment he has made of the reasons for the increase in the number of higher education institutions in deficit.

In the new regulatory framework, the Office for Students (OfS) has responsibilities to monitor, assess and report on the financial sustainability of registered higher education providers in England. The OfS will shortly be publishing its first report on the financial health of the sector.