§ 13. Dr. Lynne Jones (Birmingham, Selly Oak)If he will make a statement on the take-up of university places in the current academic year. [59115]
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Education and Employment (Mr. George Mudie)Overall the total number of accepted home applicants has already exceeded the final 1996 figure and is running at just 4,000 below the comparable 1997 figure of nearly 300,000.
§ Dr. JonesWhat does my hon. Friend's analysis of the take-up of university places this year tell him of the 1107 prospects for the Government achieving their aim of increasing the proportion of people from lower-income backgrounds obtaining higher educational qualifications?
§ Mr. MudieWithout being complacent, we are clear that the increase we projected of 500,000 additional students in further and higher education by 2002 will be achieved. My hon. Friend knows how keen my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State is to widen participation and it is clear from an analysis of this year's figures that fears that working-class youngsters would be put off applying to university by the fees have not been realised. The figures have stayed at the same level and we are confident that we will achieve a wider participation.
§ Mr. Tim Boswell (Daventry)Does the Minister agree that it is alarming that the number of applications from mature students has slumped for next year? Many such students want the second chance offered by a return to learning, and many have family 1108 responsibilities. Will he commit the Government to monitoring the impact of charges imposed to see whether they are having a particular effect either by sector or by type of student? That would allow us to see whether Dearing was right and the Government wrong, as I strongly suspect is the case.
§ Mr. MudieI am sorry that the hon. Gentleman has ended on such a sour note. We agree that the figures should be carefully analysed. The number of youngsters applying for next year has gone up, and there are several reasons for the drop in the number of mature students. Mature students had the flexibility to move their applications forward to 1997, which was not available to younger students. Other factors are demography—that cohort was 3 per cent. down—greater participation in higher education by some groups, and a stronger labour market. Those factors may explain the numbers, but I agree that analysis is necessary, and I share the hon. Gentleman's ambition to increase the number of mature students.