Leading article: Pulling teeth

The Lords are having fun passing amendments to the higher education Bill. So far, they have forced one significant concession from ministers.

The Lords are having fun passing amendments to the higher education Bill. So far, they have forced one significant concession from ministers. Last week, a Government amendment was tabled ensuring that the access regulator would have no power to penalise universities that fail to recruit students from wider social backgrounds so long as they show they have tried. Whether this succeeds in heading off amendments designed to remove all regulatory powers from the Office for Fair Access (Offa) is debatable. Ministers are in a real pickle. They need to show that Offa has teeth to get top-up fees past their backbenchers - and they don't need another fight with the Lords. All of which to-ing and fro-ing goes to show how difficult it is to introduce changes that hit the middle classes in their pockets and are so politically unpopular.