MPs blast England’s ‘failed market’ in higher education and OfS

What did everyone expect? If you encourage or even force universities to be more business-like then they will do so. This means that their focus becomes the bottom line and their own image or status (along with lots of shiny buildings).

In other news, bears, Pope, etc. Why treat things that aren't businesses as if they were businesses and be surprised that they became more like businesses?

We have a REF; and a TEF... Perhaps we need a MEF — a university Management Excellence Framework? That could assess just how well (or not) institutions are managed, and reveal the shrinking proportion of "Tuition Fees" that are actually spent on... er... teaching.