Wiping out student debt is only an ambition for Labour rather than a promise, John McDonnell has conceded.
The shadow chancellor appeared to water down one of Jeremy Corbyn’s most eye-catching pitches to young voters at the election, committing Labour only to “look at the system” of student fees.
Labour pledged in its election manifesto to scrap tuition fees for future university students.
However, in an interview with NME a week before the election, Corbyn also vowed to “deal with” the debts of students who had already taken out student loans, saying Labour would look at ways to reduce the debt or lengthen the period of paying it off.
He added: “I don’t see why those that had the historical misfortune to be at university during the £9,000 period should be burdened excessively compared to those that went before or those that came after. I will deal with it.”
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Challenged about the pledge to wipe out the debts of past students today, McDonnell stopped short of matching Corbyn.
“The system is imploding, that’s the problem”, he told the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show. “Half of the student debt, we now know, is not going to be paid back. So the system itself is falling apart. We’ve got to look at the system.”
McDonnell said delivering on the pledge would cost “about” £100 billion. Asked if it would happen under a Labour government, he said: “We’ll look at what we can do. It’s a real ambition that we’ve got,” adding: “I don’t want to promise something we can’t deliver.”
Justine Greening accused Labour of dishonesty. The education secretary said: “Jeremy Corbyn and Labour have not been honest with young people. During the election campaign Mr Corbyn promised students he would wipe out tuition fee loans, at a cost of £100 billion.
“Now his chief lieutenants have U-turned on this commitment and young people will see it as a betrayal.”