
The Labour Party has failed to grasp that the mood of the country is turning against it
When student earnings are measured using the Government's Longitudinal Educational Outcomes data across a career lifetime, the average graduate's earnings outstrip the non-graduates by more than £100,0000, even once higher taxes and student loan repayments are taken into account. What's more, graduates are at least twice as likely to be in employment than those who didn't go to university.
For the vast majority of students, university pays off.
Vivienne Stern
Chief executive, Universities UK
London WC1
SIR – I read with interest the article by Julie Henry regarding the worth of going to university.
The article mentioned the financial burden of student debt, and also parents' large financial contribution, both of which remained unpaid when the promised return of a good salary after graduation did not materialise.
What was not mentioned was that the rise of 'new' universities and the need for student accommodation over the past 20 years have also created an opportunity for buy-to-let landlords. Many purchased properties close to the universities, then converted them into student houses of multiple occupation, which gave a good return on their investment. Historically, these properties would have been bought by first-time buyers or for long-term rentals.
All this has not only added to the need for more housing in most university cities across the United Kingdom, it has also created a huge number of properties which lie empty for a substantial period of the year.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Daily Record
an hour ago
- Daily Record
Extra £3.45 million awarded to study into possible upgrades to key Dumfries and Galloway road
The UK Government has allocated the cash to a project looking into bypassing the A75 around Springholm and Crocketford. An extra £3.45 million is to be put into investigating upgrades to the A75. The UK Government has allocated the cash to a study looking into bypassing Springholm and Crocketford. The new funding is part of a £66 million package Chancellor Rachel Reeves has announced to improve transport links in the west of Scotland. She said: 'We're pledging billions to back Scottish jobs, industry and renewal - that's why we're investing in the major transport projects, including exploring upgrades to the A75, that local communities have been calling for. 'Whilst previous governments oversaw over a decade of decline of our transport infrastructure, we're investing in Britain's renewal. This £66 million investment is exactly what our Plan for Change is about, investing in what matters to you in the places that you live.' The need to upgrade the A75 was identified in the Scottish Government's second Strategic Transport Projects Review and the UK Government's Union Connectivity Review. Despite roads devolved to the Scottish Government, in 2022, the then Chancellor Jeremy Hunt announced £5 million for a feasibility study into bypassing Springholm and Crocketford. That was increased to £8 million by Tory Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in 2023 – but after Labour won last year's General Election, the amount allocated was reduced to 'up to £5 million'. The aaward of an extra £3.45 million now takes the total for the study to a potential £8.45 million. Scotland Secretary, Ian Murray, said: 'This £66 million investment in Scotland's roads demonstrates the UK Government's commitment to improving infrastructure and driving economic growth in all parts of the UK as part of our Plan for Change. This investment will make a real difference to people's daily lives and to the local economies of the south of Scotland, Ayrshire and Renfrewshire. 'The A75 is strategically important just not within but beyond Scotland. Its upgrading is long overdue. I am pleased that the UK Government has stepped up to fund the delivery of the A75 feasibility study in full. 'This investment is yet another example of how the UK Government is building the foundations for a stronger, more prosperous future that benefits communities right across Scotland.' While the UK Government is funding the study, work to upgrade the road will come from Holyrood. The Scottish Government appointed technical advisors to work on plans for upgrades last year.


STV News
3 hours ago
- STV News
Chancellor to announce £66m investment in Scottish transport
Chancellor Rachel Reeves will announce £66m worth of investment in Scottish transport on Friday. Renfrewshire Council will get £38.7m to link Paisley town centre with Advanced Manufacturing Innovation District Scotland (AMIDS) and Glasgow Airport. New walking, cycling, bus and car links will also be built in the area. Another £23.7m will be given to North Ayrshire Council to upgrade the B714 – providing a faster route between the three towns of Ardrossan, Saltcoats and Stevenston to Glasgow, as well as reducing traffic in Kilwinning. The Chancellor says she prioritised finding the cash during last month's Spending Review. She said: 'We're pledging billions to back Scottish jobs, industry and renewal – that's why we're investing in the major transport projects, including exploring upgrades to the A75, that local communities have been calling for. 'Whilst previous governments oversaw over a decade of decline of our transport infrastructure, we're investing in Britain's renewal. This £66m investment is exactly what our Plan for Change is about, investing in what matters to you in the places that you live.' Meanwhile, the Scottish Government will be given an extra £3.45m to suggest upgrades to the A75 in Dumfries and Galloway. The key road links the Cairnryan port serving Northern Ireland with the rest of the UK. Scotland secretary Ian Murray, said: 'New road links will connect Paisley town centre with Glasgow Airport and the new advanced manufacturing innovation district, to boost high value manufacturing in Renfrewshire. 'The upgrade to the B714 will speed up journeys between Glasgow and the three towns of Ardrossan, Saltcoats and Stevenston, as well as cutting traffic in Kilwinning. 'And the A75 is strategically important just not within but beyond Scotland. Its upgrading is long overdue. I am pleased that the UK Government has stepped up to fund the delivery of the A75 feasibility study in full.' Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country


Daily Mail
3 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Pension credit 'cliff edge' that penalises people just over income cut-off should be looked at, say MPs
The Government should look at overhauling pension credit to get rid of the current 'cliff edge' and make it fairer, according to MPs. Pension credit tops up weekly income to a minimum of £227.10 for single people and £346.60 for couples, and is worth £4,000 on average a year to those eligible. But it also opens the door to thousands of pounds of extra help with household bills, from housing costs to TV licences, which people lose if they are just over the income threshold. The case for a 'taper' to mitigate the impact on older people who just miss out on these benefits should be considered, says the cross-party work and pensions committee in a new report on pensioner poverty. Not qualifying for 'passported benefits' potentially makes people worse off than those with slightly lower incomes, the MPs point out. 'The fairness of the pensions credit eligibility criteria where if you are a penny above the threshold, you miss out on thousands of pounds, also needs to be looked at,' said committee chair Debbie Abrahams MP. Her committee also asked the Government to investigate the effect of the 'mixed age' rule, which bars couples with one younger member from pension age benefits, on those with health conditions and caring responsibilities. The work and pensions committee called on the government to launch a national strategy to tackle pensioner poverty, and to decide on and provide for a minimum level of income that provides dignity in retirement. Once set, it should create a plan for everyone to reach that level, including a review of those on the old pre-2016 state pension, say MPs. They note the old system, which involved earnings-related top-ups, disadvantaged women and that 2.1million people receive less than the old basic state pension, currently worth £9,200 a year. The report says the number of pensioners below the minimum needed for a 'socially acceptable standard of living' almost doubled to 2.8million in the 15 years to 2023. Meanwhile, experts who gave evidence informed MPs that poverty caused accelerated ageing, and there was an 18-year healthy life expectancy gap between poorer areas and wealthier ones. 'A survey of hard-up retirees by the committee painted a sense of unfairness and sometimes helplessness, with one respondent stating they had only enough for 'basic survival', while another answered that they felt they were 'shrinking' as an individual with no hope for change,' said the committee. A plan to tackle pensioner poverty The need to improve take-up of pension credit was thrown into 'sharp relief' by the decision last summer to link it to Winter Fuel Payment eligibility , said the committee. The Government has since U-turned and announced all pensioners with an income of up to £35,000 should receive the Winter Fuel payment this year. But it told MPs on the committee that overall there had been an additional 60,000 pension credit awards compared with the previous year. The report said: 'Long experience and extensive research demonstrate that the main barriers to claiming relate to pride, not wanting to ask for help and a feeling that "benefits are not for people like me".' It welcomed the Government's commitment to increase take-up but said it should put in place the resources needed to process claims in an 'efficient and timely manner', and helpline advisers able to help people with more complex cases. MPs also urged the Government to look at a change that would help carers, who are currently required to apply for carer's allowance even when they don't qualify for the payments in order to get higher pension credit. They noted Government plans to merge housing benefit and pension credit, and bring this move forward to April 2026, two years earlier than planned. Other topics explored in the report included the link between poverty and ill health and its impact on the NHS and social care services, and the trend towards more people renting in the private sector in old age rather than owning their home. Committee chair Debbie Abrahams said: 'Poverty is insidious. It isolates, damages health, and strips you of dignity. After decades of contributing to society dignity in retirement is the least you deserve. 'To boost incomes, the Government needs to come up with a strategy to increase pension credit take-up. It's a scandal that so many have missed out for so many years, often through an aversion to claiming benefits altogether, or lack of support. 'Ultimately, the Government should decide what it thinks is enough for a dignified retirement, and then work to ensure that all pensioners are on at least that level. 'Faced with a combination of high energy costs, ill-health and ever higher rates of pensioners in more costly privately rented accommodation, tackling pensioner poverty is not simply a Department for Work and Pensions issue. 'So, we're calling for a nationwide, cross-government strategy for an ageing society that should be rooted in equity and wellbeing.' Abrahams welcomed the Pensions Commission launched this week to look at future pensions, but added: 'We are keen to ensure that those reliant right now on a state pension that leaves them short are looked after too.' A Government spokesperson said: 'Supporting pensioners is a top priority, and thanks to our commitment to the triple lock, millions will see their yearly state pension rise by £1,900 this parliament. 'We have also run the biggest-ever campaign to boost pension credit take-up, with nearly 60,000 extra pensioner households being awarded the benefit, worth on average around £4,300 a year.' 'But we know there is a real risk that tomorrow's pensioners will be poorer than today's, which is why we are reviving the Pensions Commission, to tackle the barriers that stop too many people from saving.' 'One woman worked until age 75, but had only £10 a week after bills' Caroline Abrahams, charity director at Age UK, welcomed the 'thoughtful' committee report which she said came closer to proposing workable solutions than anything successive governments have produced in recent years. 'This is to the committee's great credit, but it is also an indictment of the lack of focus from our political leaders in preventing and tackling pensioner poverty, the incidence of which is growing, with the result that approaching three million older people are now on less than is required for a minimum decent standard of living. 'One woman quoted in the report said she had worked to 75 but now had only £10 per week after bills. She said: 'It's not living. I am having to cut down on everything and it is taking its toll on my mental and physical health." 'Many of the individual recommendations in the report are excellent and we would particularly spotlight those relating to the need for a cross-government strategy on an ageing society; an Older People's Commissioner in England; a social tariff for energy; and a comprehensive DWP strategy to promote benefit uptake, including of pension credit, the low take up of which this cross party Committee rightly terms "a scandal". 'The Committee also correctly questions the fairness of the "mixed age couple" benefit rule –– which can mean people in their 70s and beyond still receiving working-age benefits – and the adequacy of financial support for older people who rent their homes.' Independent Age chief executive Joanna Elson said: 'The Work and Pension's Committee has highlighted the urgent truth; the UK needs a strategic approach to tackle pensioner poverty. 'The older people Independent Age speaks to are living on desperately small incomes, forcing them to make drastic cutbacks. They are going to bed in hats and coats, eating one small meal a day and washing less to save on water. This is not right. 'Our own research highlights the importance of people having an adequate income in later life, particularly those reliant on just the state pension and social security system.'