May wants fairer student system
earlier diagnosis of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) in children who could then be given appropriate treatment earlier. It is estimated that around one in every 100 people in the UK has ASD. ACTING Ukip leader Gerard Batten has defended his description of Islam as a “death cult” and claimed a “significant minority” of Muslims are extremists who want to be martyred.
London MEP Mr Batten, who took over at the head of the crisis-hit party after Henry Bolton was ousted on Saturday, said Islam “glorifies death”.
He said Muslim migrants coming to the UK should reject the “dark age ideologies which many of them bring with them”. IN BEATRIX POTTER’S much-loved Tale Of The Flopsy Bunnies, Mr McGregor – the ever-menacing anti-hero – announces he will make quick cash by selling a sack of his floppy-eared neighbours.
Now, more than 100 years since the book’s release, the Royal Mint has revealed the farmer’s mortal enemies shall adorn the very object of his desire – a dazzling set of coins.
Peter Rabbit is one of four characters from the children’s author’s canon to appear on change this year, also including Flopsy Bunny, the mother of the captured rabbits. The four designs will be added to the mint’s Beatrix THERESA May will announce a sweeping review of post-18 education as she admits to serious concerns about a system that leaves the poorest students in England with the highest debt.
The Prime Minister will acknowledge the current system of university tuition fees of up to £9,250 a year had not resulted in the “competitive” market that had been expected and instead “we now have one of the most expensive systems” in the world.
The Government-led review, supported by an independent chair and panel, will look at all aspects of student funding, including the maintenance support available to help with the cost of living.
In a speech she will say the goal of making university accessible to teenagers from all backgrounds “is not made easier by a funding system which leaves students from the lowest-income households bearing the highest levels of debt, with many graduates left questioning the return they get for their investment”.
The review comes amid widespread concern about the debt burden on students and the high interest rates, currently 6.1%, on loans. Potter collection, first launched in 2016 to commemorate 150 years since her birth. Peter Rabbit is the first of the 50p pieces to go on sale, followed later this year by Flopsy Bunny, Mrs Tittlemouse and a helpful mouse from The Tailor Of Gloucester.
Each image embossed on
Mrs May will acknowledge the concerns of students, parents and grandparents about the levels of debt faced by graduates.
“The competitive market between universities which the system of variable tuition fees envisaged has simply not emerged,” she will say.
“All but a handful of universities charge the maximum possible fees for undergraduate courses.
“Three-year courses remain the norm. And the level of fees charged do not relate to the cost or quality of the course. the coin is a recreation of the hand-painted illustrations which brought the books to life, the Royal Mint said.
Peter Rabbit coins can be bought on the Royal Mint’s website from today and have been developed in collaboration with Frederick Warne & Co, Beatrix Potter’s original publisher.
“We now have one of the most expensive systems of university tuition in the world.”
Former education secretary Justine Greening has urged the Government to reintroduce maintenance grants for poorer students.
Mrs May said the review will “examine how we can give people from disadvantaged backgrounds an equal chance to succeed” which includes “how disadvantaged students and learners receive maintenance support, both from Government and universities and colleges”.
The issue of university finance has become a key political battleground with the Tories struggling to win over young voters from a Labour party which has promised to scrap fees.
The Prime Minister will also use the speech in Derbyshire to encourage a shift in the “outdated attitude” that prizes academic qualifications over technical skills.
She will say her vision is for “equality of access to an academic university education which is not dependent on your background”, but “a much greater focus on the technical alternatives too”.