Top universities should be allowed to charge students more than others, Russell Group chief argues

From the Newshound archive · first published 19 September 2026.

The Russell Group's chief executive, Libby Hackett, has called for elite universities to be permitted to charge higher tuition fees than other institutions, describing the existing flat-fee structure as "not fit for purpose." She contends that degrees from Oxford, Cambridge and other leading universities generate stronger graduate earnings, making tiered pricing both fair and justified. Hackett also proposed that courses in fields with clear social value — nursing and teaching among them — should carry lower fees for students. The fee ceiling currently stands at £9,790 for the 2026-27 academic year, rising from the £9,250 cap that has been in place since 2017-18.

Russell Group universities are subsidising courses by up to £3,500 per student because the fee cap fails to cover average teaching costs.

Hackett wants bold reform covering not just subject differences but the type of institution — a direct pitch for a two-tier fee market.

The 2012 fee cap trebling to £9,000 was meant to trigger flexible pricing, but universities never gained the power to charge differently — a structural failure Hackett now wants reversed.