§ Mr. RedmondTo ask the Secretary of State for Education what are the costs of education in England and Wales for EC students met by(a) his Department and (b) each local education authority; and what are the numbers of such students from each EC country, and in each level of institute of education.
§ Mr. BoswellStudents from other EC member states attending designated courses of higher education in the United Kingdom qualify for an award covering their course fees up to a specified maximum, where they satisfy basic eligibility conditions similar to those for students who live in the United Kingdom. In 1991–92 there were some 11,100 such award holders studying in England and Wales. In that year, mandatory awards expenditure by local authorities in England and Wales on students from other EC member states totalled £22.8 million; local authorities are fully reimbursed for this expenditure by the Department. In the same year, additional expenditure by the Department on awards to students from other EC member states attending part of a higher education course at an institution in England and Wales totalled £1.5 million. Copies of Department for Education statistical bulletins 21/93 and 22/93, which give details of students from abroad and student awards in England and Wales, are available in the Library.
Other provision for students from other EC member states studying in England and Wales, which flows from the grant made annually to institutions by the higher education funding councils, is in the region of £80 million. Reciprocal rights apply to British nationals studying elsewhere in the EC.