London students face £90,000 bill for getting a degree

Students face a bill of £90,000 to study in London under plans to dramatically increase tuition fees.

Landmark reforms unveiled by Lord Browne will allow universities to charge as much as they want for yearly fees in the most radical review of funding in 50 years.

Under the proposals, students in the capital will pay as much as £90,000 when the cost of living and interest on loans are taken into account. The price could hit £120,000 for a five-year medical course.

Sally Hunt, general secretary of the University and College Union, said: "The reality is that this price tag will put many of our most able young people off, and make university the preserve of the wealthy once again."

The shake-up, aimed at closing the shortfall in university funding, sparked Nick Clegg's first major revolt with calls for Liberal Democrat ministers to resign rather than "betray their principles".

Sir Menzies Campbell vowed to vote against any increase in tuition fees. Defending the reforms, Lord Browne said the poorest pupils would be protected under plans that "will put students in the driving seat of a revolutionary new system". His review calls for:

* The current tuition fee cap of £3,290 to be lifted and for universities to be allowed to set their own price.

* Those which charge more than £6,000 a year will be hit by government charges, but the capital's best universities, as well as Oxford and Cambridge, could charge as much as £12,000 a year.

* It recommends raising the salary threshold at which student loan repayments must start from £15,000 to £21,000.

* Universities that want to charge more than £6,000 will have to meet high standards of teaching and contribute more to poorer students.

* No student would pay back their loans until they were in work, with outstanding loans written off after 30 years.

* Higher-earning graduates would pay back their loans at an interest rate equal to the Government's cost of borrowing, while those earning below the threshold would pay no real interest rate.

* In addition, the review proposes to simplify the living costs system, so every student is entitled to a flat-rate maintenance loan of £3,750.

Changes to tuition fees, to be introduced in 2012, would hit London students hardest, according to the University and College Union. They said the cost of a three-year degree in the capital would rise from £26,090 to £90,079 if fees rise to £12,000 a year.

They took into account interest payments on loans for fees and maintenance costs as well as the cost of living in the capital, which is estimated at £11,00 a year by the NUS.

Lord Browne, who dismissed the idea of a "graduate tax" as "unworkable", defended the plan, saying: "These reforms will put students in the driving seat of a revolutionary new system.

"Universities can start to vary what they charge but it will be up to students whether they choose the university. The money will follow the student who will follow the quality."

He added that, under the proposals, the bottom 20 per cent of earners will pay less than under the current system and only the top 40 per cent of earners would pay back close to the full amount.

Lord Browne said: "There is protection for the amount of interest people are to pay. These are measures to protect the weak and make sure the strong pay their fair share."

Mr Clegg said: "Crucially, when people pay back for their university they only do it when they can afford to do it and some pay more back than others. I think that is a fair, sustainable approach."

Business Secretary Vince Cable was this afternoon expected to broadly back Lord Browne's proposed reforms but he faced a growing revolt.

Linda Jack, a member of a Lib-Dem policy committee, claimed that 30 Lib-Dem MPs could be prepared to rebel though parliamentary sources could not back this up. "The integrity of the party is at stake here," she said.

Mr Clegg was against a rise in fees during the election campaign. Baroness Tonge, the former MP for Richmond Park, said Lib-Dem ministers who had signed a pledge to oppose an increase in fees should "resign rather than betray their own principles".

Cambridge Lib-Dem MP Julian Huppert vowed to vote against a rise in the fees. Several other Lib-Dems have said they will vote against or abstain on any moves to increase the fees.

Q&A

How much will universities charge for tuition fees?
The review recommends removing the £3,290-a-year cap on tuition fees, which means universities could technically charge more than £20,000. But the report recommends imposing a "levy" on universities that charge more than £6,000. This will still make charging higher fees worthwhile for universities. In all, a university charging £10,000-a-year will retain 81 per cent of the overall fee, those charging £11,000 will keep 77 per cent and those with fees of £12,000 will get 73 per cent of the total fee.

What will happen to student loans?
Students can take out a loan of £3,290 a year to cover fees. They can borrow between £3,497 and £4,924 to pay for living costs. Under the Browne review, they can still take out a loan to cover the new fees. Loans for living costs will be capped at £3,750 for all students. Currently, students repay nine per cent of all income above £15,000, but today's review recommends lifting this to £21,000. Student debts would be wiped out after 30 years.

Will students still get grants?
The amount students could claim in grants would increase under this review. Currently students can get a full £2,906 grant if household income is below £25,000, but today's report recommends raising the grant to £3,250. Currently, students are not eligible for anything if parents earn £50,000 or more. The review recommends access to small grants if household income is below £60,000.

Will changes affect all courses?
The Browne review recommends removing direct government funding for all university courses, other than "priority" subjects, such as the sciences, technology, nursing, clinical medicine and certain languages. Subjects such as the arts and humanities would no longer be paid for by the state.

Why does it cost more to study in London?
The cost of living in the capital is much higher. The National Union of Students says the average rent for a room in a shared house in London is £125.34 a week, compared with a national average of £98.99. London also has some of the best universities in the UK and a rise in fees is likely.

'COST OF LONDON WOULD MAKE IT UNFEASIBLE TO PAY MORE'

Suki Hichens, 20
The third year languages student already has £30,000 of debt. She studies French and Spanish at King's College and has to work 20 hours a week as a receptionist to make ends meet — twice the number of lectures she has.

Her 16-year-old brother, from Sevenoaks, will not go to university if tuition fees go up. She said: "I voted for the Liberal Democrats in the last election and I feel completely betrayed. In their manifesto they kept talking about other parties which had broken their promises, and now they have done exactly the same.

"My loan doesn't even cover my rent. I went to university because I got a place at King's which I knew was a very good place to go. Poorer students will get help, and it won't matter to richer students, but those in the middle will suffer the most. I was speechless when I saw the news today and heard the proposals on tuition fees. I definitely would not have gone to university if this had happened before."

Tom Clarke, 22
The third year geography student said he "definitely" would not have gone to a London university if the cap on tuition fees had not been in place.

Mr Clarke, from near Peterborough, pays £3,290 a year to study at LSE with the help of inheritance money from his grandfather, but said the cost of living in the capital would make it "unfeasible" to pay any more.

Mr Clarke, who lives in Willesden, said lifting the cap would lead to a battle between London universities to see who could charge the most.

Meresh Rajeswaran, 19
The college student expects to live half of his life "thinking of huge debts", if the proposals to increase tuition fees come into effect. He is studying chemistry, biology and sociology at Uxbridge College, and will apply for a university course in biomedical sciences next September. He already works in a shop on Saturdays and Sundays to save up for these studies.

"I don't want to borrow too much," he said. "The main thing that concerns me is how do I pay it back? Especially at the moment, when graduates aren't guaranteed a job."

James Owers, 21
The third year maths student says he would have "thought twice" about going to King's College if it had been more expensive than universities outside London.

He uses a maintenance grant to pay the university's £3,290 fees. By removing the cap on fees, he said it could lead to an "American" system where the most elite universities were also the most expensive. He said: "People will be reluctant to make the investment to go to university if they don't know whether they will get the return."

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in