Theresa May is to Consider Tuition Fees, Loans and Funds

Theresa May, the Prime Minister, may reveal funding reviews establishing better access to education for low-income students. As a part of a looked-for review of higher education, UK universities are urged to loosen their obligations to widen participation for less disadvantaged students.

The reduction of tuition fees from £9,250 to £6,000 per annum is one of the options being considered. The prime minister will deliver the speech on the 19th of February, 2018.

Justine Greening, the former education minister, and Jo Johnson, the former universities minister, opposed the review of higher education funding that was released at the Conservative Party conference last October; however, both now were moved to new positions in the Prime Minister's last cabinet reshuffle, leading to a wide evaluation of higher education funding.

Further, a list of its own recommendations on students’ loan reform is being prepared by The House of Commons Treasury Select Committee, including the reintroduction of maintenance grants and a simplified structure of the current loan system, which has been said to be too complex.

David Laws, the former Lib Dem education minister who now currently the Education Policy Institute, said “We know from what ended up happening to Justine Greening that there was previously a lot of concern at the Department for Education that this review is simply about pouring additional money into trying to buy off the student vote that the Tories have lost – and it would end up being a large subsidy to people who already do well out of the tertiary education system,”

“Fairer funding is needed for the 50-55% who don’t go to university at all – and get a pretty bad deal.”