The SNP’s policy of free tuition for Scottish university students has come under scrutiny in recent days as huge budget cuts bite across the public sector, including in higher education.
Ministers have been forced to end funding for additional places for Scots, created during the pandemic, and there are fears of further reductions to come.
Even the SNP’s education secretary Jenny Gilruth admitted last week the government’s tuition fees policy was creating “challenges” for universities.
As questions grow over the future of flagship initiative, The Scotsman has taken a look at the policy, its unintended consequences, and what might happen next.
Higher education was effectively free in the UK between 1962 and the 1990s. Amid funding pressures, an inquiry recommended in 1997 that students start contributing to the cost of their education once they were in work. In 1998, Tony Blair’s Labour Government introduced tuition fees across the UK, to be a maximum of £1,000 per academic year.
Following devolution in 1999, Labour struck a power-sharing deal with the Liberal Democrats, who were opposed to charging for tuition.
A commission recommended replacing tuition fees in Scotland with a graduate endowment scheme, which would involve a one-off contribution from graduates, with loans available to assist.
The scheme was introduced in 2001/02, with the endowment payment set at £2,000, payable the April after graduation.
