Remove Interest from UK Student Loans
We call on Parliament to remove interest on UK student loans. In 2024–25, £15.2bn in interest was added while only £5bn was repaid — roughly 3x as much. Graduates enter repayment with average debts of around £53,000, and around 75% are expected to never repay in full.
Signatures
9
signatures
Government response threshold (10,000) · 9/10,000
Debate threshold (100,000) · 9/100,000
- 05 MAR 2026Petition rejectedduplicate
You may wish to sign the following petition which calls for the same action: Abolish interest charges on student loans https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/756832
- 29 JAN 2026Petition created
Background
• Lower and middle earners often pay mainly interest, while high earners clear loans more quickly. In 2024–25, 67% of those repaying student loans added more interest than they paid, and 2.2m people now owe £50k+.
• Repayments add 9% on top of tax and NI, pushing marginal rates towards 60%. The Times reports graduates typically need to earn ~£66k before reducing the balance.
• Unlike other debts, student loans cannot be cleared through bankruptcy and are repaid via the tax system for 30+ years.