§ Mr. WorthingtonTo ask the Secretary of State for Education what means of redress a student has against any malfunctioning of the Student Loans Company that affects his or her financial or educational position.
§ Mr. BoswellAs indicated in the charter for higher education, a student who has a complaint against the Student Loans Company should, in the first instance, contact the company. If he is not satisfied with the company's response, or more than three months has elapsed since the complaint was made, the borrower can ask the company to refer his complaint to the independent assessor appointed in accordance with the Student Loans Act 1990. A copy of the assessor's terms of reference was placed in the Library of the House on 19 July 1990.
§ Mr. WorthingtonTo ask the Secretary of State for Education (1) what plans she has to hold a public inquiry into the functioning of the Student Loans Company;
(2) what assessment she has made as to the extent to which the Student Loans Company is honouring its promises on quality of service to students;
(3) what assessment she has made as to the quality of service being offered by the Student Loans Company; and what plans she has to improve its performance.
§ Mr. BoswellMy right hon. Friend has no plans to hold a public inquiry. I refer the hon. Member to the answer that I gave to the hon. Member for Liverpool, Riverside (Mr. Parry) on 16 January,Official Report, columns 340–41.
§ Mr. WorthingtonTo ask the Secretary of State for Education whether the staff of the Student Loans Company are on performance-related pay; and what has happened to pay levels over the past three years.
§ Mr. BoswellThe pay of staff of the Student Loans Company is performance related. Pay increases for individuals are a matter for the company. For 1992–93, 1993–94 and 1994–95 they were settled within overall totals of 4.42 per cent., 1.48 per cent. and 2.49 per cent., respectively.
§ Mr. ByersTo ask the Secretary of State for Education what is the estimated cost of the investigation being carried out by Coopers and Lybrand into allegations concerning the Student Loans Company.
§ Mr. BoswellCoopers and Lybrand was appointed to undertake the investigation, following competitive tender action. Its bid represented the best value for money in relation to the competition.
The individual value of contracts between the Department and its suppliers is considered to be commercial in confidence and cannot therefore be disclosed.