§ Mr. DalyellTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is the current minimum sum recommended for fees for postgraduate medicine courses undertaken by overseas students; how many such students were on courses of postgraduate medical training in 1979 and how many are now; and if he will reconsider Her Majesty's Government's decision to charge overseas students full fees for medical postgraduate courses.
Mr. JacksonUniversities are themselves responsible for setting tuition fees charged to their overseas students. The University Grants Committee recommend minima. For science and clinical courses in 1988–89 the annual recommended minima are: science, £5,180; clinical, £9,590.
442WIn 1979 there were 1,204 full-time non-United Kingdom-domiciled students on postgraduate medicine and dentistry courses at universities in Great Britain. In 1986 the comparable figure was 1,179.
The overall number of postgraduate students from abroad in universities in Great Britain in 1986 was higher than in the late 1970s before the introduction of full-cost fees. My right hon. Friend sees no reason for considering a return to the previous system of subsidised fees.