§ Mr. WelshTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what factors underlay the decision to reject the recommendations of the National Committee of Inquiry into Higher Education to retain maintenance grants for students. [21849]
§ Dr. HowellsWe agree with the National Committee of Inquiry into Higher Education that the Government should continue to provide support towards students' living costs, but we do not believe that general grants for maintenance are the answer to ensuring a modern student 367W support system. Instead, students' living costs should be met out of their future earnings and—in the case of better-off students—by their parents. Compared with those without degrees, graduates on average see their earnings rise by as much as £4,000 for every £20,000 of earnings within about ten years of graduation.