To ask the Scottish Executive what progress it has made on its commitment to consider undertaking a survey in association with the Student Awards Agency for Scotland and the Scottish Higher Education Funding Council in respect of recommendation 4 of the Independent Committee of Inquiry into Student Finance, referred to in Annex A of Scotland the Learning Nation: Helping Students ; when the report of such a survey will be published, and what the reasons are for its position on this matter.

We intend to undertake a specific income and expenditure survey of Scottish further and higher education students during 2003.