§ Mr. Steelasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will publish in the Official Report his Department's estimate of the number and percentage of students who receive the full parental contribution towards their grants.
§ Sir Keith JosephThe Department does not collect information on the payments made by parents to their student children. However, a recent survey by the National Union of Students suggested that in 1982–83 some 53 per cent. of students holding mandatory awards whose grants were reduced by an assessed parental contribution received amounts equalling or exceeding the assessed contribution, from their parents, as compared with only 27 per cent. in 1974–75.
§ Mr. Freudasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will give the figures in respect of each university of the student members in receipt of Research Council, Department of Education and Science or local education authority grants or awards who have been assessed as overseas students for the purpose of fees.
§ Mr. BrookeAt the beginning of the academic year 1982–83, 27,226 students in universities in Great Britain 483W were being charged overseas fees. Of these 418 held awards from a local education authority, six from the Department of Education and Science and 28 from a research council. Following a judgment given in another place on 16 December 1982 in the case of Akbarali and others v. Brent and others, an unknown number of students have also been granted mandatory awards retrospectively by local education authorities. The universities' statistical record does not release information about individual universities other than that which the universities' statistical record policy group has sanctioned for routine publication.
§ Mr. Freudasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will publish in the Official Report the composition of overseas students at British universities and polytechnics by nationality at the latest available date and in 1979.
§ Mr. BrookeIn 1979–80 and 1982–83, students at British universities with United Kingdom nationality numbered 245,200 and 256,800, respectively. Correspondingly, those with other nationalities were 47,500 and 38,600. In 1982–83 the principal countries were as follows:
Country of nationality Student numbers Canada 647 Cyprus 586 Federal Republic of Germany 780 Greece 1,518 India 1,513 Iran 1,330 Iraq 1,539 Jordan 535 Kenya 413 Libya 250 Malaysia 4,443 Nigeria 2,149 Pakistan 496 Singapore 748 Sri Lanka 473 Sudan 424 Turkey 193 United States of America 2,181 Zimbabwe 288 In addition, there were 906 students from Hong Kong whose nationality is unknown.
Similar information for 1979–80 is not readily available.
Information on the nationality of students is not available for those at polytechnics.
§ Mr. Freudasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many appeals against assessment for overseas student status in respect of grants or fees have been dealt with by his Department in each of the last three years.
§ Mr. BrookeThere is no formal provision for appeals to my right hon. Friend and no record is kept of the number of complaints received.
§ Mr. Freudasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what penalties are imposed upon universities in cases where reassessment of status from overseas to home student has caused targets to be exceeded.
§ Mr. BrookeNone.
§ Mr. Freudasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many full-time staff are employed on the 484W assessment of fee status of students at universities and polytechnics; what were the figures in 1979 and 1982; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. BrookeThis information is not available.
§ Mr. Freudasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will seek to publish comprehensive guidance to facilitate standard assessment of overseas student status throughout the tertiary sector of education.
§ Mr. BrookeThe relevant statutory provisions already apply the same standards of assessment to the classification of students for both fees and awards purposes for the great majority of cases. Where there are differences between fees and awards provisions they have been deliberately adopted for policy reasons. Seeming inconsistencies in the assessment of students' status arise because responsibility for assessment rests variously with local education authorities, with other award-making bodies and with institutions: with such decentralised arrangements it is inevitable that different decisions will sometimes be reached on the basis of the same or similar facts. My right hon. Friend does not believe that such differences could be avoided by the issue of further guidance about the application of the various statutory provisions. He is, however, always ready to consider proposals for improvement in the present arrangements.
§ Mr. Woodasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he proposes to issue recommendations about fees for students from outside the European Community in 1984–85.
§ Sir Keith JosephThe Government's policy is that students who began their courses on or after 1 September 1980 should pay fees that cover the cost of their education. But following the recommendations of a study conducted by the Overseas Students Trust the Government no longer propose to impose minimum fees on authorities or institutions, which will therefore be free to determine the fee to be charged in accordance with the Government's policy, and in the light of their own circumstances.
I understand, however, that the University Grants Committee and the Council of Local Education Authorities have issued recommendations to universities and local education authorities respectively on the minimum fees that should be charged in 1984–85 to students paying the overseas rate of fee who began their courses on or after 1 September 1980. Their recommendations are as follows:
485W
Universities Such fees as universities consider necessary to meet the cost of the educaton in question, subject to the following minima. Recommended minima for 1983–84 are shown in parentheses. 1984–85 1983–84 £ £ Arts courses 3,150 (2,900) Science courses 4,150 (3,800) Clinical courses in medicine, dentistry and veterinary science 7,650 (7,000)
Maintained and assisted institutions Such fees as the local education authorities and institutions consider necessary to meet the cost of the education in question, subject to the following minima. These minima are the same as those recommended for 1983–84. £ Advanced courses 3,180 Non-advanced courses 1,750 Students who began their courses before 1 September 1980 are still entitled to a subsidised rate of fee. Maximum fees for 1984–85 will be specified in regulations under the Education (Fees and Awards) Act 1983. These will be as follows. Current maxima are given in parentheses.
£ £ Postgraduate courses 2,148 (2,046) First degree and other advanced courses 1,653 (1,575) Full-time non-advanced courses 885 (843)
§ Mr. Woodasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what recommendations he has issued about fees for home students on courses in further and higher education in the academic year 1984–85.
§ Sir Keith JosephFor the academic year 1984–85 I have recommended the following fee levels for home students and for students from other European Community countries.
1984–85 1983–84 £ £ Postgraduate courses 1,569 1,494 First degree and diploma courses 500 480 The recommended 1984–85 postgraduate fee represents a 5 per cent. increase on that for 1983–84. The recommended first degree and diploma fee is that foreshadowed in my reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Norwich, North (Mr. Thompson) on 17 November 1983 at c. 534.
Other fees for home and European Community students are the responsibility of the local education authorities. I understand that the Council of Local Education Authorities has recommended fees for 1984–85 as follows:
Advanced further education* Non.advanced further education 1984–85 £
1983–84 £
1984–85 £
1983–84 £
Full-time 500.00 480.00 309.00 294.00 Sandwich/block release (weekly rate) 13.90 13.30 8.60 8.20 Part-time per course hour .47 .44 .28 .27 Part-time annual fee for one session per week 50.00 48.00 31.00 29.40 * Other than first degree and diploma courses.