Labour secures vote which could embarrass Tories over planned tuition fees hike

The vote will strain the Conservatives' relationship with political partners the DUP, who have opposed rises

Angela Rayner, Labour's shadow education secretary (Getty)

Labour has secured a vote on Government plans to hike university tuition fees, which if won could help force ministers to back down.

The vote will cast judgement over whether Theresa May’s administration should push on with plans to increase fees beyond the existing £9,000 cap.

It comes as the Government attempts to woo younger voters following an election in which most people under 50 deserted the Tories for Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour, which has pledged to scrap fees.

The vote could also prove difficult for the Democratic Unionist Party, who are supporting the Conservatives in government having previously voted against increasing the cap on student fees in 2010.

Some Conservative MPs are also uncomfortable with the level of fees, with Ms May’s most senior minister Damian Green promising a review earlier this year.

Under Conservative proposals the annual tuition fee cap of £9,000 is to rise by £250 a year, increasing the debt of a student on a four-year course by £1,000 overall.

The Government had attempted to get the rise in student fees through Parliament earlier in the year using secondary legislation, with less scrutiny, but Labour demanded a vote.

The issue was delayed by the election, but now Labour has tabled a special motion to revoke the regulations raising the cap on top-up fees.

The party claimed that the vote would be binding on the Government, but the Department of Education rejected the assertion on Tuesday.

Shadow Education Secretary Angela Rayner said: “They won’t even trust their own MPs to back their latest hike in student fees, so they’re trying to stop us voting on it at all.

“They may be afraid of debating this issue but we aren’t, so we will now provide the time and the vote using Opposition time.

“This latest tuition fee rise could cost students up to a thousand pounds more over the course of their degree, yet they are refusing to keep their promise to graduates that the repayment level would go up with inflation.”

The Northern Irish DUP’s website says the party remains committed to maintaining fees at a level that will keep places “affordable and allow access to everyone in our society”.

If the fees increase passes it would represent a double blow for many students, who are also facing a huge rise in interest rates on loans taken to pay fees.

All students who took out a £9,000-a-year loan in 2012 or later will rack up 6.1 per cent interest while they study.

After they graduate, the interest rate will vary from 3.1 per cent for those who earn £21,000 or less to the maximum 6.1 per cent for £41,000 earners.