Nick Clegg says student loans are a 'mess' and 'deeply unfair'... despite trebling tuition to £9,000

Speaking to the BBC, Sir Nick said he would accept criticism of his role in increasing the tuition fee cap to £9,000 "on the chin".

The policy represented a significant reversal for the Liberal Democrats, who had pledged before the 2010 election to oppose any increase in university tuition fees.

Sir Nick argued that while he accepts responsibility for the decision taken during the coalition Government, later policy changes introduced after he left office have played a major role in shaping what he described as the current unfair system.

He said: "I'll take the criticism for what we did on the chin, but the system has been changed a lot since then."

Sir Nick pointed in particular to decisions taken by later Governments, including the freezing of repayment thresholds, which he suggested has worsened the burden placed on graduates.

The Autumn Budget delivered by Chancellor Rachel Reeves confirmed that the repayment threshold for plan 2 student loans will remain fixed at £29,385 from April 2026 until 2030.

The freeze means graduates will begin repaying their loans at lower real-terms earnings than would otherwise have been the case if the threshold had increased in line with inflation.

Threshold freezes have been implemented previously, with the level remaining unchanged at £27,295 for four years between April 2021 and 2025.

Plan 2 loans apply to students in England who began undergraduate study between the 2012/13 and 2022/23 academic years.

Borrowers on these loans are charged interest calculated at Retail Price Index (RPI) inflation plus up to three percentage points, with the precise rate determined by their earnings.

The National Union of Students is meeting with MPs in Westminster today to press for reforms to the student loan system.

Student representatives from universities across the country have travelled to Parliament to present their concerns directly to parliamentarians.

NUS president Amira Campbell said: "The strength of feeling in the failures of the student loan system cannot be denied, student leaders from across the country are travelling down to Westminster today to speak with their MPs about this broken system."

The union is calling on ministers to increase the repayment threshold for plan 2 loans, arguing that doing so would reduce the pressure on graduates affected by the freeze.

Some Labour backbenchers have also raised concerns about the current system and urged the Government to reconsider aspects of the policy.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has previously said his Government would explore ways to make the student finance system fairer.

Downing Street indicated last month that ministers may consider potential changes to both repayment thresholds and interest rate structures as part of that process.

Sir Keir has previously described the current arrangements as a "broken student loans system" inherited from the Conservatives, adding that the Government has restored maintenance grants to support students.

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has proposed an alternative approach, stating that her party would limit interest on plan 2 loans to RPI inflation alone.

Under that proposal the additional three percentage point interest charge currently applied to some borrowers would be removed.

A Government spokesperson defended the current policy, saying the repayment threshold freeze was introduced "to protect taxpayers and students now, alongside future generations of learners and workers".

The spokesperson added that the system ensures graduates with lower incomes remain protected through repayments that are based on earnings.