Brexit: Theresa May says students ‘priced out’ of EU universities are better off in UK

Prime minister dismisses protest that only rich will be able to afford to study in EU in future – by insisting UK has higher-quality institutions

Students “priced out” of EU universities by higher fees after Brexit should stay in Britain and enjoy higher-quality courses, Theresa May says.

The prime minister dismissed a protest that only rich children will be able to afford to study abroad in future by insisting no EU country could match the standards on offer at home.

EU countries are expected to hike their fees for UK students if – as a leak revealed last weekend – the government presses ahead with scrapping limits on charges for EU students in this country.

Asked if she feared domestic students would then be “priced out of studying at universities in other EU countries”, Ms May replied: “While there are students from the United Kingdom who choose to go and study at universities elsewhere, we are very fortunate in the United Kingdom in having a number of our universities that are actually in the 20 of universities in the world.

“I’m pretty certain, for the top 10, we are the only EU country that does have universities in that category. We have excellent universities here in the United Kingdom.”

But Rachel Reeves, a Labour MP, protested: “I don’t want to see a situation where only children from better-off families – either from the EU or from this country – are able to access the universities of their choice.”

She demanded to know how the plan would “help to tackle the injustices you have spoken about so passionately?”.

Giving evidence to a committee of MPs, Ms May did not deny the plan to force EU students to pay full international fees, from the autumn of next year.

Instead of £9,250 a year, they would face the unregulated annual charges of up to £38,000 faced by other overseas students – and no longer be eligible for loans to cushion the blow.

The plan has been condemned by Guy Verhofstadt, the European parliament’s Brexit chief, who said angrily: “Students mustn’t be victims of Brexit. I will write to PM May saying we will never accept this.”

But, speaking to the Commons Liaison Committee, the prime minister also dismissed fears that fewer EU students would come to Britain, if the price soared.

“There are overseas students that obviously pay higher fees than EU students do at the moment – and we have seen increases from many of those countries,” she argued.

“The fee level has not been something that has put those students off.

“What I hope attracts those students to come to the country is the quality of education they receive in our universities, and I hope that will continue whatever the arrangements for the fees that we put in place in the future.”

The MPs were told that students would be given “sufficient notice in due course” of the fee levels from autumn 2020.