§ Mr. RedmondTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science, pursuant to his answer of 5 December,Official Report, column 7, what proposals he will institute to ensure that mature students of 50 years and over will be eligible for student top-up loans; and whether there is to be an upper-age limit for entitlement to student top-up loans.
Mr. JacksonNone. Like the student loan schemes of other countries, our top-up loans scheme will be subject to an age limit. We propose to restrict top-up loans to eligible students aged less than 50 at the start of their course. Students reaching that age after the start of their course will however be eligible to make fresh borrowings for the full length of it.