This is what students who took part in the consultation said:

"If tuition fees are increased I probably won't be able to go to university and my whole future and the future of so many others will suffer. I am working really hard at college on my A-Levels and hope to study medicine at university - if the tuition fees go up as much as the government are proposing, it will be unlikely I will be able to go."

"I dislike the fact that the bursary system is based on family income, as opposed to what portion of your family income you would have access to. My dad left home in my second year of university and was the main bread-winner; there was no change in my personal financial situation whatsoever, but the amount I was entitled to in bursaries literally doubled (and my dad wasn’t even particularly high-earning)."

Concerns about debt

"As a student who pays more then £3,000 a year for tuition fees I think the idea of making people pay even more then that is disgusting. I understand that the money needs to come from somewhere but at the end of the day nobody should have to choose between an education and a debt which would be impossible to pay off."

"I struggled to get through my first two years of university with the money that had been loaned but I know it is going to be even worse when I leave with a £20,000-25,000 debt to pay off. I can’t imagine having to pay more."

Concerns about marketisation and inequality

"I am from a poor family and worked hard in my year out so that I could afford to attend university, despite this I am still struggling financially. If I was in the position that potential university students are now facing, financially I could not consider going to university. I feel that the raise of the tuition fee is highly exclusionary towards people from low-income backgrounds, and the raise in fee will directly reduce the number of people from low-income background attending university; this is a backward step."

"Is a degree really worth the financial stress, life-long debt and hard work? I feel that with the changes proposed more people will ask themselves this question and will choose not to attend university, this will particularly affect people from the working class, who are once again marginalised. This step reinforces the division of wealth and class in contemporary society."

"The rich go to the best institutions and the poor have to make do."

Hardship and student support

"Even with the loan, the grant and the bursary (not much anyway) from the Uni, students still have to work as the money is hardly enough to survive."

"[The system should] try to prevent students having to get a job during university to live off of, as it hinders their education. My student maintenance loan doesn’t even cover the average rent in the area so that suggests either I have to get a job or starve."

How should higher education provision be funded?

"It should be a graduate tax related to the type of job/income. Many people choose to work in the public sector and earn a lot less compared to those in the private sector. Those who work in the public sector generally give more back to society compared to those who work in areas such as banking."

"I love the idea of having universities free on entry but payment being linked to earnings through life, this would be fairer than the current system and would not penalise individuals who choose degrees which didn’t have specific careers."

"I feel that students should contribute partly to the cost of their education but that it is unacceptable to expect them to pay for this in advance. In my opinion, the best way to do this is for students to pay a 'graduate tax' once they have completed their studies. I believe that each student should pay the same amount of money as their peers for their course. I don't agree that the graduate tax should be based on income, but rather that the graduate should make payments from their income until they have paid off their financial contribution to their education."

"Similarly to the way that students repay their student loan, I think there ought to be a minimum earning point for graduates to start paying a graduate tax and that it should end after a specified number of years."

"A graduate tax would ensure that graduates have a financial commitment to their education without the shadow of debt above them and tax removes the potential of a negative graduate premium."

"Tuition fees should be reduced or completely scrapped. It’s ridiculous that we have to pay for education, especially if it stops us earning a higher salary."

"Education should be free to everyone at all levels, supported with universal grants, all to be paid for by taxation through a publicly run HEFCE. The government’s claims to discuss ‘fairer funding’ options are taking place against the background of a potential push towards the complete privatisation of our education."