The original claim was that UK universities are free, which they are not. Just because you don't pay for it immediately does not make something free. And even

The original claim was that UK universities are free, which they are not. Just because you don't pay for it immediately does not make something free. And even if you end up not paying back the full amount, you still end up paying something back. Additionally, relying on loan reduction schemes or scholarships does not mean education is free. The Scandinavian countries would have been a better example, because education is truly and actually free there, i.e. you do not pay anything (and as a citizen, you will probably get money -- which is not a loan and does not have to be paid back -- from the government as financial aid, further enabling students). On top of that scholarships for Masters degrees (depending on subject) are exceedingly rare (and not means-tested), with few loan options available (none of them government-funded, if I remember correctly).