The government has announced that it will not be reviewing its cap on student numbers even though applications for university places this year rose eight per cent according to UCAS figures released last month.

Actual applicants increased from 430,489 to 464,167 for undergraduate courses. Similar rises were recorded in the number of mature students applying this year, which rose 12.7 per cent.

Anthony, McClaren, UCAS, chief executive, said: “There has been considerable speculation about the effect of current economic conditions on applications for higher education but these figures give some assurances that demand remains strong.”

In a report published in October last year the government implemented a cap on the growth of students at 10,000 down from 15,000. The department for universities, innovation and skills made it clear last week that this cap would be kept; however, they are reviewing numbers for the 2010/11 session.

Nonetheless, as a result of previous commitments on student numbers, 30,000 new students spaces are available this year. However, the government's pledge to have half of all young adults in university by 2010 is set to fail, as figures have not risen as much as expected.

In Scotland, applicants have risen by 5.7 per cent, however Universities Scotland, an umbrella group for Scotland's twenty higher education institutions, has said that funding has to increase. Funding for Scottish universities is below that of its closest competitors and well below that of the Nordic countries.

NUS president, Wes Streeting, has greeted the results but also appealed to the government to review its cap on student numbers for this year and invest more in education.

He said: "It is hugely encouraging to see a record breaking number of applications to Britain's universities, but we remain concerned about the lack of places available as a result of the cap on numbers imposed by the Government."

The NUS president called for the government to adopt a common sense approach to the current downturn: “It is surely better to bear the cost of additional university places now than to shoulder the burden of long-term unemployment later.”

Predictions that international student numbers could fall as a result of President Obama being elected into office and the recession hitting economies across the world have been undermined by the figures. Universities will welcome the news that non-EU student applications have risen by 9.6 per cent, with China remaining the largest provider of non-EU students with applications rising 7.5 per cent.