An increase in university tuition fees in England is expected to be announced for the first time in more than seven years, Sky News understands.
Fees have been frozen at an annual level of £9,250 since the 2017/18 academic year, but the government is expected to lift the cap so they can rise in line with inflation.
That will increase the cost of tuition to £9,500 in October 2025 and £10,500 by 2029.
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It’s expected that Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson will confirm the move in a House of Commons statement later today.
Any such announcement is likely to provoke a strong backlash, given Sir Keir Starmer had pledged to abolish tuition fees when he stood to be Labour leader in 2020.
The prime minister rowed back on that promise early last year, saying it was no longer affordable because of the “different financial situation” the country was in, and he was choosing to prioritise the NHS.
However at the time he said Labour would set out a “fairer solution” for students if it won the election.
The change comes as universities have been dealing with a funding crisis, largely driven by a huge drop in overseas students.
Rules brought in by Rishi Sunak’s government made it harder for international students, who pay higher fees than British ones, to bring their families with them to the UK.
Universities have been pleading for more investment, but Ms Phillipson said recently that institutes should seek to manage their own budgets before hoping for a bailout from the taxpayer.
When she was in opposition, she also touted the idea of reducing the monthly repayments “for every single graduate” by changing how the loan is paid back.
Writing in The Times in June 2023 she had said: “Reworking the present system gives scope for a month-on-month tax cut for graduates, putting money back in people’s pockets…
