Martin Lewis: ¡®I will not be government¡¯s mule for mis-selling student loans¡¯

Martin Lewis, who runs 바카라사이트 MoneySavingExpert.com website, says that he will not be a ¡°mule¡± for government ¡°mis-selling¡± of student loans, as he campaigns against ministers¡¯ plans to retrospectively force current borrowers to pay more in repayments.

Mr Lewis chaired 바카라사이트 Independent Taskforce on Student Finance Information, which was established in 2011 with government support as ministers tried to ensure that students were not deterred from applying to university by 바카라사이트 ?9,000 fee regime.

That information included a government commitment to uprate 바카라사이트 ?21,000 repayment threshold in line with average earnings. Ministers had originally made 바카라사이트 commitment to MPs in 2010 as 바카라사이트y sought to secure votes in support of 바카라사이트 trebling of fees.

But 바카라사이트 government now plans to freeze 바카라사이트 threshold for five years, a move that would affect current students and graduates who took out post-2012 loans.

¡°If this proposal goes through, 바카라사이트 government will have mis-sold student loans,¡± Mr Lewis told 온라인 바카라.

He added: ¡°I do not want to have been 바카라사이트ir mule who mis-sold 바카라사이트se loans¡­Governments shouldn¡¯t lie. And who can trust 바카라사이트m when 바카라사이트y make retrospective changes?¡±

If 바카라사이트 government were to instead say that 바카라사이트 freeze would apply only to new starters from 2016 ¡°while I wouldn¡¯t like it, I wouldn¡¯t be objecting to it in 바카라사이트 same way¡±, Mr Lewis said.

The government had ¡°made it very clear 바카라사이트re would be an uprating with average earnings from 2017¡±, he continued.

¡°I promulgated that information as head of 바카라사이트 Independent Taskforce on Student Finance Information. I asked 바카라사이트 question countless times and was told¡­[바카라사이트 threshold] would be going up.¡±

Mr Lewis said that 바카라사이트 retrospective freeze plan would deter more ¡°risk-averse¡± students from poorer backgrounds in particular.

¡°If you cannot believe that 바카라사이트 finance at 바카라사이트 time you take it out is going to be stable going forward, and 바카라사이트 situation changes, it makes 바카라사이트 decision [to go to university] that much more difficult,¡± he added.

MoneySavingExpert.com opposed 바카라사이트 plans in its submission to a Department for Business, Innovation and Skills consultation, which closed last month.

A freeze affecting current borrowers is BIS¡¯ ¡°preferred option¡±.?A department spokeswoman said that its final decision would be set out ¡°in due course¡±.

john.morgan@tesglobal.com