§ Mr. BoswellTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many student loans are now overdue; if he will provide a breakdown of the amounts by bands; and what steps are being taken by his Department and the Student Loans Company to recover them. [92309]
§ Mr. MudieAt 31 March 1999, 125,000 accounts were overdue out of a total of 999,400 due to repay. These figures are provisional and include loans sold to the private sector. The breakdown of amounts overdue by banding is not available, but the Company had collected 90 per cent. of moneys due by 31 March 1999.
The Student Loans Company follows rigorous collection procedures. Its procedures currently are comparable with industry standards and will increasingly reflect the influence of the private sector owners of sold loans in improving collections practice.