Lifelong learning, upskilling, going back to university to retrain and meet the needs of the economy are all things that people need to be doing to succeed in the competitive global world. However, new Government funding plans may mean that anyone considering going back to university for a second degree will face costs up to four times as much as an undergraduate on the same course who is embarking on a first degree. In September 2007, the Government of the United Kingdom announced that, from 2008, 100 million pounds of funding for students who are studying for a higher education qualification that is equivalent to, or lower than, a qualification that they have already been awarded would be withdrawn. Previously, universities funded students taking first or second degrees in the same way. The author maintains that the planned cuts contradict the Government's stated lifelong learning agenda and will hit hardest those universities offering courses to adults and part-time students. Withdrawal of funding from students embarking on further learning, unless universities step up to cover the course costs, will most severely impact the students themselves with potentially prohibitive fees.