Overview
- From April 2027, the Plan 2 repayment threshold will be held at £29,385 for three years, a policy confirmed in November and covering about 5.8 million borrowers.
- IFS analysis indicates many graduates will repay far more than first suggested, including an example of roughly £14,800 extra over 30 years due to rule changes and indexing shifts.
- Martin Lewis urged a rethink on BBC Newsnight, calling the freeze immoral and estimating those above the threshold could pay about £300 more per year by 2030.
- Chancellor Rachel Reeves defended the system as fair, stressing repayments start only above the threshold and any remaining balance is written off after 30 years.
- Student groups warn the freeze will squeeze recent graduates, while official data show £15bn of interest was added to loan balances in 2024–25 against £5bn repaid, with total debt at around £270bn.