Written question WQ92890
- Asked by
- Rhys ab OwenIndependent
- To be answered by
- Cabinet Secretary for Education
- Tabled
- Due
- Answered
- Time to answer
- 7 days
Question
What is the Welsh Government doing to prevent additional higher educational courses from being scrapped in Welsh universities, such as the PGCE course in Aberystwyth and the BA in Journalism in the University of South Wales?
Answer
Answered by Cabinet Secretary for Education
The Welsh Government has raised the fee limit for full-time higher education courses in Wales to £9250, to reflect the increased cost of provision in universities.
Higher education funding in Wales compares favourably to other UK nations. According to London Economics research published earlier this year, higher education funding per full-time student in Wales is 18% higher than in Scotland and 22% higher than in Northern Ireland, and will be at a comparable level to England following the forthcoming increase in fees.
Other factors creating financial pressures for the higher education sector across the UK are outside of the Welsh Government’s control, including higher pay costs (agreed through UK-wide collective bargaining), increased pension costs, inflation, fluctuation in the international student market, and the failure of the UK Government to recompensate losses from EU funding.
Universities are autonomous bodies, and it is not for the Welsh Government to direct universities on their staffing or course provision. That said, we want to ensure that staff and students are supported and will continue to work with the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales, (and from August) the Commission for Tertiary Education and Research to monitor the current challenges the sector is facing.