Martin Lewis meets Kemi Badenoch to discuss student loans as Starmer under pressure to U-turn on ‘unfair’ system

Money expert Martin Lewis has met with Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch to discuss student loans following their clash over the issue on live TV.

The government is under increasing pressure to reform Britain’s student loan system, which has left scores of graduates with sky-high debts.

Earlier this week, while setting out her pledge to slash the interest rate on the loans if elected on Good Morning Britain, Ms Badenoch was “ambushed” by Mr Lewis who interjected to criticise with her policy.

The financial expert later apologised for “gatecrashing” her interview, but the pair appeared to bury the hatched on Wednesday as they met again to discuss the state of the student loan system.

“Returned the favour and 'ambushed' @MartinSLewis in my office today with a group of graduates suffering under Plan 2 loan repayments,” Ms Badenoch wrote on X alongside a photo of the pair in discussion.

“But good on him for coming over to Parliament for round 2 of our debate on my plan to cut interest rates on student loans. Martin and I don't agree on everything - but we know that graduates are being shafted by the current system, and we both care enough to try and change it.”

Mr Lewis said he held an “interesting meeting and engaged conversation” with both Ms Badenoch and the Conservative shadow education minister Laura Trott.

He wrote: “We chatted for an hour about the system & options and hopefully something positive will come of it. Good to talk to the opposition as most of my meets are usually with ministers. For me, in the short term the most important thing is the govt reverse its freeze of the repayment threshold.”

Sir Keir Starmer has faced increasing pressure to reform the student loan system as millions of young workers on a Plan 2 loan face spiralling debt from financial agreements they deem to be “unfair”.

The chancellor has been characterised as a “loan shark” by campaigners, after she announced a freeze on the repayment threshold for three years, leading to some people having to pay a lot more back than they originally borrowed on the high-interest loans.

Sir Keir told on Wednesday told the Commons he will look at ways to make the loans system fairer, but chancellor Rachel Reeves suggested any changes were unlikely to come at the spring statement, which will outline the latest economic forecasts that influence government spending, next week.

On Wednesday, Sir Keir’s own MPs piled further pressure on ministers to reform the “dog's dinner” of a system.

Opening a Westminster Hall debate on the issue, Labour MP for Ilford South, Jas Athwal, said the system was “in urgent need of reform”, adding: “Many believe Plan 2 loans and the system at large are predatory, regressive, kills graduates’ ambitions, and the spiralling interest is stressful for students.”

The government has previously said that it inherited the student loans system from the previous Tory government, and said threshold freezes have been introduced to “protect taxpayers and students now, alongside future generations of learners and workers”.