Higher Education Bill

Part of the debate – in the House of Commons at 3:30 pm on 27 January 2004.

Alert me about debates like this

Photo of Mr Alan Howarth Mr Alan Howarth Labour, Newport East 3:30, 27 January 2004

We can certainly say that raising the threshold is a substantial improvement and that the important thing to do is to work towards creating better conditions—more propitious conditions—for people to go to university.

The Government are being fair to students in holding down the maximum annual repayable fee to £3,000. If in due course it is proposed that the maximum fee should be raised in real terms, we will all need to think very carefully indeed in considering graduates' income and expenditure patterns. People need to save more for their pensions while shouldering prodigious mortgage costs, bringing up children and, possibly, caring for elderly relatives. They will have to repay university fees as well as student loans. I hope, for the sake of universities, that the £3,000 maximum fee is eventually increased somewhat, but it must be affordable for graduates.