In email correspondence published by policy newsletter, Research Fortnight, the IFS’ head of student loans analysis, Professor Lorraine Dearden states that the two reports published by the IFS “are not correct.”
The IFS "have now found out that key parameters of what the government is proposing have changed but this has not been made clear in any of their papers", she wrote.
Included in the analysis in the IFS reports were how much the programme would cost the taxpayer in loan defaults and the degree to which the scheme is affordable for poor students.
Aaron Porter, NUS President said:
“Plans to rush through a tripling tuition fees are based on a dodgy dossier. The numbers do not add up and Ministers’ claims that their policy will be fair for students or good for taxpayers lie in tatters.”
“Nick Clegg and David Willetts have asked us to take their word for it but the supporting evidence and independent analysis has seemingly been based on misleading Government information and has been disowned by the IFS."
"The Government must immediately rethink this reckless, deeply unpopular and irrational policy."
The revelations come as the Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg is reported to be seeking to push through proposals to triple tuition fees to £9,000 “as quickly as possible” despite having signed an NUS pledge to vote against any increase in fees before the general election.
It follows the NUS/UCU Fund Our Future demonstration in London on Wednesday 10 November 2010, attended by more than 50,000 people.
Update: NUS would like to confirm that it has not claimed that the Government has 'deliberately misled' the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) but notes that a lack of transparent data means those reports previously published will now be revised.
The IFS have issued a statement in which they state that the Government has not 'deliberately misled' them and that they will be revising their reports: http://www.ifs.org.uk/pr/statement_171110.pdf