ePolitix.com examines the government's plans for reform of higher education finance.

• Ministers say they want to increase the proportion of under-30s attending university to 50 per cent by 2010.

• Universities say they are facing a cash crisis which is set to worsen unless they are able to secure new revenue streams.

• The prime minister sees reform as essential if he is to deliver on his agenda of preparing Britain's public services for the next century.

• Giving universities new powers to charge up to £3000 a year for degree courses - replacing the lower up-front tuition fees with a charge that is paid back after graduation. Following a new move announced yesterday the £3000 limit will remain for the first three years.

• The creation of a new body to regulate university admissions in a bid to ensure universities charging fees also ensure they recruit undergraduates from across the social spectrum.

• More help, including the reintroduction of a means-tested grant, to encourage students from poorer backgrounds to enter higher education.

• Yes, in general, but they also believe that the £3,000 limit may have to rise if the financial crisis they face is to be averted in the medium term.

• Other academics fear that the new regulator will challenge the autonomy of the selection process and lead to selection by background and not ability.

• Many do, but a large minority object to the proposed reforms. Several potential rebels have been won back by pledges of more assistance for the poorest students. Suggestions that the income trigger could also be raised have also been welcomed.

• Over 80 still appear set to vote against the government - leaving Number 10 to admit that the result could be "too close to call".

• The rebels want the government to scrap the commitment to "variable" fees which they say will force poorer students to attend less elite courses and will introduce a market into higher education.

• The prime minister and the education secretary have mounted a real push to avert a defeat tonight. Members of the international development committee are heading back from Africa amid predictions that the vote is teetering on a knife edge.

• Whilst the government hopes the concessions may prove enough, ministers are up against a cast-list of heavy hitters including former George Mudie and Barbara Roche. Other rebels include former Cabinet minister Clare Short and backbencher Ian Gibson. But Nick Brown, widely seen as the rebels' ringleader, has switched sides - announcing he will vote with the government tonight.

• No, for a variety of the reasons. The Liberal Democrats propose an alternative system that would fund extra higher education spending through a 50 per cent tax rate on earnings over £100,000. The Conservatives say the proposals are a botched and messy compromise and are opposed to the creation of an access regulator. The SNP, Plaid Cymru and the Ulster Unionists are all set to vote against the government

• The minority parties have joined with the Liberal Democrats and the Tories to remind the prime minister that Labour had an explicit manifesto commitment opposing the introduction of top-up fees during the lifetime of this parliament. But a handful of Conservatives may vote with the government - having suggested their party should have taken a principled stand by supporting the government.