Public Finance

Much of the on-going debate around fee-free higher education has centred on its appropriateness and fairness for students, universities and colleges. The unavoidable and large budgetary trade-offs this policy creates – i.e. its effect on other government programmes and expenditures – has however received little attention. While the longer term costs and benefits of fee-free education are difficult to quantify, we look at the large short term adjustments that were necessary in government’s 2018/19 budget. The data shows that significant budget cuts have already been necessary across government, many of which are likely to impact on the lives of the poor and / or the growth potential of the economy.

A worrying narrative that has emerged from the on-going student protests is that you are either in favour of free higher education for all; or against it. In fact there are a wide range of options in between available, and these options should be weighed against the country’s other priorities. We look at some of the most important government policy objectives within post-school education, and highlight the tremendous financial costs associated with meeting these goals. Against this background, it is clear that what is required is a transparent discussion of the way forward within post-school education. While fee free education for all is a noble goal when viewed in isolation, implementing it is likely to severely constrain the country’s ability to achieve many other important objectives. Attempting to achieve free higher education for all before it has been achieved for the poor and the lower middle class, and before some of the severe financial and other challenges in vocational training system have been addressed; risks undermining the country’s educational and economic progress and even denying education and training opportunities to those who might need them the most.