Vince Cable to punish universities that charge top fees

10 April 2012
WEST END FINAL

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Business Secretary Vince Cable today warned universities planning to charge high tuition fees that they could lose students.

Mr Cable, angry that so many institutions have opted for the top rate despite promises that this would only happen in "exceptional circumstances", said any places left empty as a result could be permanently withdrawn.

He spoke today after London South Bank University said it must charge £8,000-plus just to break even because the Government has removed virtually all of its funding. The University of Central Lancashire has also announced it will charge £9,000 a year.

Mr Cable told a higher education funding conference that universities could "find themselves in trouble" if they insisted on imposing the maximum fees permitted.

He added: "The biggest mistake a university could make is to underestimate its consumers. Students will search for value for money and compare the offers of different universities. Under the new principle whereby funding follows student choices, some institutions could find themselves in trouble if students can't see value."

He added: "In circumstances where places are unfilled, we might withdraw those places, and institutions should not assume they will easily get them back."

In total, 30 universities have already declared their intended fee levels for next year, with 23 planning to charge £9,000. The Unite union told MPs yesterday that charging the highest rate in fees was becoming a status symbol among vice-chancellors.

The union's Mike Robinson told a select committee: "There are a number of institutions going at £9,000 and we don't think it is an accident.

"We think it is deliberate, whether it's planned between them is a concern.

"The fee increases are a runaway train, with an enormous financial crash at the end that the public purse will have to pick up."

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