New loans to help Muslim students go to university
4 Apr 2014 12:35 PM
A new model for Sharia law-compliant student
loans has been unveiled yesterday (3 April 2014) by Universities and Science
Minister David Willetts.
The
proposed system will enable people whose religious beliefs forbid them from
taking out loans that accrue interest to take advantage of student
loans.
Speaking at a Universities UK Conference on universities
and growth, David Willetts launched a consultation on the proposed model asking
for views on whether it is an acceptable alternative to the conventional
system.
The
model will be available to anyone who adopts similar financial principles.
Anyone taking the loans will not be at any advantage or disadvantage –
they will repay the same amount as other borrowers.
David Willetts said:
The
government is committed to ensuring that anyone with the ability and desire can
go to university.
Sharia-compliant student loans will also give
universities access to a wider pool of talent and help the UK get the higher
level skills we need to secure long-term economic growth.
The
intention to develop Sharia law-compliant student loans was announced by the
Prime Minister last year (2013).
The government is seeking
feedback from current and prospective students, community representatives and
higher education providers.
The
consultation opened yesterday (3 April 2014) and will run for 12
weeks.
Notes to editors:
-
The
full consultation document can be found athttps://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/sharia-compliant-student-fina
nce.
-
The
government’s economic policy objective is to achieve ‘strong,
sustainable and balanced growth that is more evenly shared across the country
and between industries’. It set 4 ambitions in the ‘Plan for
Growth’, published at Budget 2011:
- to
create the most competitive tax system in the G20
- to
make the UK the best place in Europe to start, finance and grow a
business
- to
encourage investment and exports as a route to a more balanced
economy
- to
create a more educated workforce that is the most flexible in
Europe
Work is underway across government to achieve these
ambitions, including progress on more than 250 measures as part of the Growth
Review. Developing an Industrial
Strategy gives new impetus to this work by providing businesses,
investors and the public with more clarity about the long-term direction in
which the government wants the economy to travel.