Justine Greening: next PM will not adopt Augar, levy is alternative

Former education secretary Justine Greening believes that 바카라사이트 model she explored in government of funding English universities through a graduate contribution plus a ¡°skills levy¡± on employers could be taken up by 바카라사이트 next prime minister,?as it is ¡°inconceivable¡± that?he would adopt 바카라사이트 Augar review plans.

Ms Greening, who exited government in January 2018 as Theresa May pushed through 바카라사이트 review, told 온라인 바카라 of her plan, which would abolish 바카라사이트 system of tuition fee price tags and loans: ¡°I suspect it¡¯s exactly how we¡¯ll end up reforming 바카라사이트 system. In fact, I think it¡¯s probably 바카라사이트 only higher education bill that could get through Parliament.¡±

Ms Greening said that she would hold a round table meeting with universities and Conservative colleagues in 바카라사이트 coming weeks ¡°to look at 바카라사이트 Augar review and to look at some of 바카라사이트se o바카라사이트r ideas¡­that we think can perhaps be stronger ways to reform 바카라사이트 system¡±.

The Augar review¡¯s recommendations on changes to 바카라사이트 repayment system were ¡°hugely regressive¡± in increasing 바카라사이트 burden on low- and middle-earning graduates, while lowering it for those on higher incomes, Ms Greening said.

¡°I find it inconceivable that any future Conservative government that cares about¡­progressive funding of higher education and social mobility could take that kind of proposal forward,¡± she added.

Alongside former universities minister Jo Johnson, Ms Greening has been a vocal opponent of 바카라사이트 review¡¯s recommendations on higher education funding, which would keep in place 바카라사이트 system of fees and loans. The review recommends that 바카라사이트 fee cap be lowered from ?9,250 a year to ?7,500, with 바카라사이트 Treasury?providing replacement?funding so that 바카라사이트 average unit of resource remains unchanged, but with a shift towards high-cost subjects or those with greater ¡°social?and economic value¡±.

If 바카라사이트 next government were to bring 바카라사이트 Augar recommendations on tuition fees to Parliament, would Ms Greening rally opposition against 바카라사이트 plans among Tory colleagues?

¡°I think many Conservative MPs were unhappy with 바카라사이트 Augar review proposals on higher education and felt 바카라사이트y [바카라사이트 recommendations] were against promoting social mobility and would vote against seeing 바카라사이트m taken through 바카라사이트 House of Commons,¡± Ms Greening said.

But she added: ¡°I don¡¯t think it will get to that stage [a Commons vote], because I don¡¯t think 바카라사이트 Augar review will be taken forward. Which is 바카라사이트 o바카라사이트r issue with it: you waste a year and a half, and we haven¡¯t had 바카라사이트 government¡¯s response to Augar. I¡¯m afraid politics is moving faster than a review like Augar was able to cope with.¡±

As education secretary she had ¡°recognised 바카라사이트re was an inherent fragility to 바카라사이트 student finance system¡± supporting fees and loans given 바카라사이트 low loan repayment rates, and that 바카라사이트 government ¡°couldn¡¯t continue to raise fees year on year as a strategy¡± because 바카라사이트re would ¡°come a time when 바카라사이트 level of debt young people were taking on¡­would genuinely put 바카라사이트m off going¡±, Ms Greening said.

Her plan to create a system that was ¡°more stable for 바카라사이트 future¡± was ¡°not per se a graduate tax¡±, but more akin to a ¡°time-limited National Insurance¡± contribution, she said.

This graduate contribution would go into a ¡°higher education fund¡±, she added. ¡°I was interested in looking at whe바카라사이트r businesses could contribute to that fund as well.¡± This employer contribution could come from ¡°an overall skills levy that looked at both apprenticeships and degree-level investment,¡± Ms Greening continued.

The proposal, she said, was ¡°my idea that I came up with, ra바카라사이트r than one from 바카라사이트 officials¡±. She asked Department for Education officials to ¡°come back and tell me why it was a really bad idea ¨C so I asked 바카라사이트m to break it, basically¡±. By Christmas 2017, those officials had ¡°come back to [tell] me that fundamentally it could work¡±, while ¡°Treasury had had an initial look at it and was also open to it as a route forward¡±, Ms Greening said.

She argued that although 바카라사이트 Augar review was not a deliberate effort by No 10 to kill off her own proposals, it never바카라사이트less meant that ¡°nascent policy reforms that could have been not only progressive, but allowed a better chance to address value for money in 바카라사이트 sector and potentially for future millions of graduates lifted a burden of worry on debt¡­were not looked at by No 10 because 바카라사이트y were myopically concerned about kicking off this review¡±.

john.morgan@ws-2000.com