Debt owed by Scottish students to the public body responsible for providing them with financial support has soared to more than £1.8bn from £1.65bn in 2005-06, according to official figures.

Debt owed by Scottish students to the public body responsible for providing them with financial support has soared to more than £1.8bn.

The Scottish Executive has been urged to move urgently to deliver on the SNP's election promise to scrap loans and write off the total amount owed.

According to official figures, the overall amount owed to the Student Loans Company (SLC) in Scotland rose from £1.65bn to £1.84bn between 2005-06 to 2006-07.

In its manifesto, the SNP pledged to replace loans with means-tested grants as well as writing off the accumulated debt of Scottish graduates to the SLC at the rate of some £40m a year.

Once in power, the Nationalists moved quickly to propose legislation to scrap a one-off £2000 charge called the graduate endowment - paid when students complete their studies - as an indication of their intent.

While the move was welcomed by students, yesterday's figures show just how small a contribution the endowment makes to the overall debt burden, accounting for just £12m of the total.

Last night, student leaders urged the executive to move immediately to set out how it intends to deliver the rest of its promises on student debt.

They are particularly concerned that students from poorer backgrounds are put off from studying at university because of the fear of debt. The wealthiest 7% of Scots are five times more likely to go to university than the least-well-off 7%.

The average student in Scotland leaves university with debts of between £16,000 and £18,000.

Over and above money owed to the SLC, many have consumer debts as well.

NUS Scotland claims the student loan is insufficient to cover living expenses for many students who top up their income with part-time work and credit cards.

However, credit cards aimed at those in further education rarely offer bonuses and most student credit cards come with higher charges than those faced by regular customers.

James Alexander, president of NUS Scotland, said: "Given the soaring levels, it is essential the executive tells us how it intends to deliver on its promises to eradicate student debt."

Scottish Labour Party education spokesman Hugh Henry questioned whether the SNP could afford to abolish student debt.

"They were very explicit about what they promised, but now they are starting to equivocate. The SNP cannot deliver because they cannot afford to write off that debt and they have therefore misled both students and their families. Scrapping the graduate endowment was mere tokenism."

However, Fiona Hyslop, the Education Secretary, said: "More than £1.8bn of state-sponsored debt is not good for the individuals concerned and not good from a public-finance point of view. This government believes that this is wrong. That is why, starting with the abolition of the graduate endowment, I will work to remove the burden of debt from our students."

The new statistics, published jointly by the executive and the SLC, represent the first time the figures have been produced separately for Scotland.

The report covers only publicly owned loans and not those sold off to the private sector. It also does not cover student debt incurred from other sources, such as bank loans or credit cards.