Higher-earning students should pay more than those on low incomes to cover the costs of higher education, announced David Willetts, the Universities Minister.
Speaking at the Conservative Party conference on Monday, Willets said, “When money is tight, it is right to expect people to make a substantial contribution towards the cost of their university education – not when they are studying but afterwards when they are graduates on a decent income. And there should be protection for the lowest paid”
The speech given by the Universities Minister appeared to confirm expectations that the upcomingBrowne Review will reccommend a significant rise in tuition fees.
Lord Browne’s report on higher education, which is expected to be released next week, has been predicted to say that universities should be allowed to increase current £3,290 annual fees to £10,000.
To support the substantial fee increase, Willetts proposed the introduction of a “progressive” funding system in which students take out loans to cover higher fees. Wealthier graduates pay back their fees at a more expensive rate.
Professor Steve Machin, a researcher for the Sutton Trust education charity, warned that undergraduate fees could “rapidly increase, particularly for those universities with the highest academic reputations”.
Lord Patten, the Chancellor of Oxford, has previously expressed his view that current tuition fees are “preposterously” low and must rise if Oxford education is to remain world class.
He said, “I would be prepared to cap the funding of our teaching grant if we were able as a result to set whatever tuition fee we wanted, provided that we could demonstrate that we were still guaranteeing needs-blind access with generous bursaries.”
