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JEREMY CORBYN accused David Cameron yesterday of sneaking behind poor people’s backs and hitting them with policies unannounced in the Tory manifesto, after the government scrapped student maintenance grants.
During Prime Minister’s Questions, the leader of the opposition attacked the Conservative Party for burdening young people with up to £50,000 in education debt.
The Labour Party also warned that the government might seek to privatise student loans next.
Addressing the Prime Minister, Mr Corbyn said: “You have form here, because there was no mention of tax-credit cuts in the manifesto either — this proposal will affect half a million students — not anywhere in your manifesto.”
Despite the best efforts of Labour and campaigners, the £3,500 support for students from poorer families was ended and replaced by a loan system on Tuesday.
The original decision was taken not by MPs after a parliamentary debate but by a committee of just 18 people.
Mr Cameron told the House of Commons that the policy would be “uncapping aspiration” and would stop workers from paying “for an elite to go to university.”
Tuition fees, currently set at £9,000 a year, and further loans do not have to be paid until students are earning £21,000.
Asked by the Star whether Mr Corbyn was concerned that the Tories’ next step would be to private student loans, a Labour spokesman said: “That’s certainly the direction of such decisions.
“Cutting maintenance grants is a short-term fix that risks costing money and at the same time is extremely unfair. Privatisation of student loans is a possibility.”
