University Grants (Hansard, 27 March 1980)

§ Mr. Mark Carlisle

The estimates for Class X (Education and Science, Libraries and Arts) Votes published on 26 March, which are subject to parliamentary approval in due course, include provisions for recurrent grants and for equipment and furniture grant to the636W universities. The provision for recurrent grant in the academic year 1980–81 is £987 million. This is a cash limit. This figure provides grant for home students at approximately the same level, in real terms, as in the academic year 1979–80.

It is expected that full-time new home undergraduate entries in 1980–81 will be in the region of 75,000, that is, about the same level as in 1979–80: that this will lead to a total home undergratuate population of about 235,000; and that within these figures progress towards the target of 4,080 undergraduate entrants in medicine will be maintained. Home postgraduate numbers are assumed to remain at their present total of about 30,000. Home students are expected to be divided equally between arts and science.

No provision is made for overseas students beginning new courses in 1980–81, for whom universities will be expected to charge full cost fees.

The grant, which covers the period from August 1980 to July 1981, provides for pay and price rises of about 14 per cent. compared with the previous year. In determining the base line grant for these assumed increases in pay and prices, an allowance has been made for the actual rate of pay and price increases—including VAT—that occurred in universities in the academic year 1979–80. Additionally, realistic allowance has been made in both the baseline and the cash limit for 1980–81 for pay awards negotiated following recommendations by the Standing Commission on pay comparability.

The grant of £987 million includes an earmarked sum of up to £5 million to be made available to universities, on the recommendation of the University Grants Committee, to help to ensure that uncertainty about prospective income from overseas students does not adversely affect selected postgraduate work of particular importance to this country, while universities are adjusting to the policy of full cost fees for overseas students. The grant also includes £1.5 million to enable the UGC to take over responsibility for Shore-ditch college when that college becomes part of Brunel University and £5 million in respect of expenditure which the UGC is to take over from the Computer Board in 1980–81.

In addition to, and separate from, the grant of £987 million for the academic 637W year 1980–81 I am making £1.6 million available in that year to help outstanding research students from overseas to attend British universities. The scheme, details of which were announced by me in the House on 27 November 1979—[Vol. 974, c. 565 and 566]—will be administered by the Committee of Vice-Chancellors and Principals.

The Government have already provided an additional £43 million to the recurrent grant for the academic year 1979–80 and I can now announce that a further £62.4 million is being provided for that year in view of various changes in the assumptions underlying grant as originally announced.

Equipment and Furniture Grant

Grant for equipment and furniture for the academic year 1980–81 is £71.59 million; this is a cash limit. In calculating this grant an allowance of about 14 per cent. has been made for price increases.

I can also annnounce that the Government have now added £1.7 million to the equipment and furniture grant for 1979–80 towards the cost to universities of price increases—including VAT—higher than those assumed when the grant was originally settled.

As explained in "The Government's Expenditure Plans"—Cmnd. 7841—a small reduction has been made in provision for home students in higher education up to 1983–84, especially in the non-university sector. The detailed implications will require discussion with the UGC and the local authority associations but for the time being universities should plan on the assumption that grants for home students 1981–82 and 1982–83 will not be very different in real terms from that announced for 1980–81.

The academic year 1980–81 spans the financial year 1980–81 and 1981–82. For the financial year 1980–81 the Government's policy in respect of cash limits is set out in part 1 paragraph 26 of "The Government's Expenditure Plans 1980–81–1983–84"—Cmnd. 7841—published yesterday. The assumptions for pay and price movements to be adopted for cash limits for the financial year 1981–82 will not be decided until later in 1980: if they are different from those set out above, consideration 638W will be given in making appropriate adjustments to the universities' grants from 1 April 1981.