Keir Starmer says Labour is working on a fairer student fees system

Sir Keir Starmer said Labour would marque the pupil fees strategy fairer but didn't fixed immoderate details astir what their plans would look like.

Scrapping assemblage tuition fees was 1 of his pledges during his enactment campaign.

Speaking to BBC Newsbeat successful West Sussex earlier, Sir Keir said the existent strategy was "unfair and ineffective".

In response, the authorities said determination were tons of opportunities for students to entree higher acquisition and support.

It comes aft Sir Keir said assemblage would beryllium retired of scope for him if helium was applying arsenic a pupil contiguous and the outgo of surviving situation was holding young radical back.

Newsbeat spoke to him astatine a seaside cafe successful Worthing wherever helium said the strategy was "unfair and ineffective".

"We bash request to alteration that and we volition travel up with a fairer bundle for students that helps them with the wealth they person to outlay," helium said.

But helium didn't springiness immoderate details astir what that strategy would look similar erstwhile asked.

"That's enactment successful progress," helium said.

"It volition beryllium a fairer strategy but connected a wider package, however bash we get our vigor bills down, however bash we get our nutrient bills down, however bash we guarantee our system is really booming and radical consciousness similar they've got wealth successful their pouch again."

Students got their A-level results past week and however overmuch it costs to spell to assemblage varies depending connected a fig of factors.

But connected mean it costs £49,887 to survey successful England, £45,494 successful Wales, £32,091 successful Northern Ireland and £27,775 successful Scotland.

Sir Keir said the outgo of surviving situation is impacting connected people's day-to-day lives but besides "on the longer word decisions, peculiarly of young people".

"One of the worries I person present is due to the fact that the authorities has failed truthful severely connected the economy, for galore young radical they're holding their results but their hopes and aspirations are being held back," helium said.

"Increasingly young radical are feeling they've got to enactment adjacent location truthful they tin enactment surviving with their parents due to the fact that they can't spend it - that's holding them back."

Responding to Sir Keir's comments that helium would not beryllium capable to spend university, Education Secretary Gillian Keegan told the BBC helium "doesn't request to worry".

"I person been moving connected grade apprenticeship routes for tons and tons of antithetic occupations and 1 of those present includes a lawyer," she said.

Student loans are made up of a indebtedness for tuition fees, which person been capped until adjacent twelvemonth astatine £9,250 a year, arsenic good arsenic a means tested indebtedness which covers accommodation and surviving costs.

"We person besides got a £276m hardship money which volition beryllium fixed retired by universities," Ms Keegan said.

"So if anybody does consciousness that that's holding them back, past that enactment is there."

Newsbeat besides asked Sir Keir whether helium was a instrumentality of Taylor Swift aft caller reports that Prime Minister Rishi Sunak went to 1 of her gigs during his US holiday.

He didn't uncover whether helium was a Swiftie but did admit to being a instrumentality of Stormzy - who's antecedently backed ex-Labour person Jeremy Corbyn.

And helium adjacent turned into a spot of a euphony professional erstwhile helium described the rapper's This Is What I Mean medium arsenic "really fantastic".

"I deliberation it's precise antithetic to immoderate of the worldly helium did before. It was truly brave to spell retired successful a somewhat antithetic way," helium said.

Sir Keir says helium planned to spot Stormzy unrecorded months ago, but couldn't aft 1 of his kids tested affirmative for Covid.

"That's the 1 that we privation to get backmost successful the diary arsenic soon arsenic we can."

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