The Labour MP and chairman of the education and skills select committee, Barry Sheerman, yesterday warned the government to expect an increase in student dropouts should it stick to a target to have 50 per cent of under-30s in higher education.

His comments come as Universities UK accused the government of "spinning" increased funding for teaching.

The Higher Education Funding Council for England last month claimed that funding per student increased by 3.5 per cent this year.

However, vice chancellors argue that in reality funding has only increased by 1.78 per cent - a real terms cut of 0.72 per cent.