Labour set to ditch pledge for free university tuition, Starmer says

1 year ago 18
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Labour will set out 'fairer solution' on university fees, Sir Keir Starmer says

Labour is set to abandon its promise to scrap university tuition fees in England if it wins power, its leader has said.

Sir Keir Starmer told BBC Radio 4's Today programme the party was "likely to move on from that commitment", blaming the economic backdrop.

The Labour leader pledged to support getting rid of fees in his 2020 leadership campaign.

But he now said the party was looking at alternative options for funding.

He added that the current fees system, of £9,250 a year, was "unfair" and "doesn't work for students, and doesn't work for universities".

Asked about the report, Sir Keir said: "We are likely to move on from that commitment, because we do find ourselves in a different financial situation."

He added there were "other ways of approaching this", adding that his party could not "ignore the current economic situation" ahead of the next election.

University tuition fees were introduced by Labour under Tony Blair, before being tripled under the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government, triggering mass protests among students.

Under former leader Jeremy Corbyn, Labour promised to abolish them, alongside reintroducing maintenance grants for poorer students, in its 2017 and 2019 general election manifestoes.

In 2019, the Institute of Fiscal Studies, a think thank, estimated the policies would cost the public purse just over £6bn per university year-group.

Labour's leader before Mr Corbyn, Ed Miliband, had proposed cutting fees to £6,000 a year.

In Wales, tuition fees are capped at £9,000, while in Northern Ireland, home students pay a maximum of £4,630 but those from other UK nations can be charged up to £9,250.

In Scotland, Scottish students are eligible for free tuition, while those from elsewhere in the UK can pay up to £9,250.

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