Loan system money not well spent
Universities and colleges would spend an extra 600 million euros on education, they promised when the basic grant was abolished. That probably did not work, according to an investigation by the Court of Audit.
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For the period 2015 to 2017, higher education committed to allocate 600 million euros for new investments to improve education. Current students would benefit from this. This is because they would otherwise be disadvantaged twice: and no basic grant and not yet the benefits of the money that will be released by abolishing the basic grant.
A third
The educational institutions even claimed to have spent 860 million on new educational improvements in the past three years. But only a third of that money can be traced back to that purpose, according to the Court of Audit. For almost the same amount, the Court of Auditors is sure that it did not turn out well and that is still the question of the remainder.
The cabinet accepted what the universities and universities of applied sciences reported about how the money was spent and, as a result, painted a too rosy picture for the House of Representatives, say the researchers. That will change in the future, assures Minister Ingrid van Engelshoven of Education. According to the ministry, 'substantial investments' have indeed been made, but the agreements on this were not clear enough for institutions and students.
Sensitive
The issue is a sensitive one in the House of Representatives, especially for GroenLinks. "If we had known that that agreement would not be adhered to, we would never have voted in favour," said GroenLinks MP Zihni Özdil today in Dagblad Trouw. "I still support the loan system, but the minister must ensure that the institutions adhere to the agreements."
MP Özdil is angry that students at many institutions have had little say in how the money is spent. That is also different from what the House had demanded. He says in Trouw: "Sometimes students were informed a day in advance and they could sign at the cross," says Özdil. The SP stated this Parliamentary questions.
Baffled
The National Student Union (LSVb) informs the ANP that it is stunned by the research results. "The Court of Audit shows that it is completely unclear whether the promised millions have been invested. Students who started studying in recent years did not receive a basic grant, miss out on the tuition fee discount and have received less good education than they were promised. That is extremely bad." , according to the LSVb.
The Association of Universities of Applied Sciences (VH) questions the criteria for assessing the agreements between the minister and the universities of applied sciences. According to the VH, they changed during the investigation period. She emphasizes that universities of applied sciences have invested heavily in the quality of education by using their reserves.
