Peter Dowd MP, Labour’s Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury, responding to comments by the Shadow Education Secretary on the Today programme on using RPI to apply interest to student loans, said:

“It is staggering that Damian Hinds doesn’t seem to see any issue with the Government’s linking of RPI to Student Loan interest rates.

“Using a widely criticised measure such as RPI to apply interest to student loans has always been about ramping up the costs to graduates and maximising government profits. This is not how our education system should operate.

“In June, House of Commons Library analysis found that graduates face up to £16,000 more student debt because of the Government’s use of Retail Price Index.

“Clearly the Tories, who tripled university fees, have no desire to ease the burden on students facing mountains of debt. Shamefully, for the Government, higher education is about profit, not the public good.”