Loan me your eyes for just two minutes (on an interest-free basis, please) for a well overdue conversation is taking place. Thanks to some brilliant reporting by the likes of The Times and LBC, we’re finally talking about student loans and how incredibly unfair the system is to graduates like me, who attended university in 2012. 

I have a Plan 2 student loan, which were issued to students who started university between 2012 and July 2023. On Plan 2, interest is charged at RPI plus – for some maddening reason – up to 3 percentage points, depending on how much a graduate earns. The result is a rate of interest that would make even a loan shark blush. Today, graduates need to earn around £66,000 per year to start reducing the actual balance of their loan, as opposed to simply paying off the interest applied. The interest begins accruing as soon as the loan is taken out. It’s common to hear stories of student debt spiralling out of control as the interest continues to compound on an already sizeable loan. I, for one, am too afraid to look at my debt total. A glance at my payslip tells me I pay almost the same toward my student loan as I pay in National Insurance. Imagine paying National Insurance twice each month only to make practically no difference to the size of your loan, or even to see it grow. 

If that didn’t tug at your heart strings (“who the hell needs a degree in International Relations anyway? You should’ve done an apprenticeship!” etc) consider that this system is regressive by design. The wealthiest kids have no student debt. The kids who are relatively well off likely have a smaller overall debt on account of not needing to take out a maintenance loan. It’s the poor schmucks like me who came from more modest backgrounds, hoping to use university to improve their socio-economic standing, that are saddled with the greatest level of debt. 

Now, I want to make one thing very clear because we have a nasty habit of turning everything into generational warfare: I do not begrudge older generations for getting a degree for free, nor do I think that those of us who took out student loans should have them written off. I do, however, think the interest rate applied is outrageous; I think the arbitrary plus three percentage points should be scrapped immediately, and I think a proportion of debt should be written off for each student, with those who have borne the brunt of the interest rate for the longest given a more generous write-off. 

This is an issue that bleeds into the broader economy. Paying hundreds of pounds per month towards a student loan means we’re saving less and we’re accumulating fewer assets. Buying a home is made considerably more challenging, as is investing for the future. We’re less likely to see a financial professional because our financial needs aren’t becoming more complicated thanks to being financially stagnant for so long. I’ve heard radio phone-ins where people my age claim they’re choosing to forgo paying into a pension to claw back some of the cash that’s being eaten up by their student loan. That’s a disaster. This system has long-term consequences, and Plan 2 graduates need the support of financial services to make the case that doing nothing about it is bad for the long-term health of our economy.  

There is perhaps one cause for optimism. A recent Organise poll found more than 85% of 3,209 surveyed said that fairer student loan policies would affect how they voted. I’m minded to believe this isn’t an issue that’s going away. Perhaps at the next election young(er) people will finally command the sustained political attention their numbers and economic weight warrant. 

Yesterday was Shrove Tuesday, Ramadan and Chinese New Year. The weekend just gone was Valentine’s Day. Historically, I’ve kept my music recommendations on theme, but I just can’t do it today. There’s too much happening. I’m overwhelmed. Instead, from my earworm to yours: Lana Del Rey – Cinnamon Girl.