Thanks for the suggestion, Jocelyn. To be honest, here in Spain university fees aren't such an issue. Public universities only charge around 1000€/academic year in tuition fees, so the worry of graduating with a huge student debt isn't much of a thing. I presume grants are available for lower-income students to cover even that cost, which is the way it should be in a civilised society, of course.

It strikes me as absurd and horrific that my parents had their university tuition and living expenses up to a point paid for by the state in the UK, I paid zero tuition fees, but received no living expense grant, and my niece and nephew who graduated there recently left with tens of thousands in debt.

Now there's generational progress for ya!

EU countries tend to have more of a model of 'educating our population to graduate level is an essential investment in our economic future - the state should cover much of the cost through direct funding, as it will be paid back many times over in increased economic activity'.

Which is the only rational approach to take, I think.