Or perhaps, businesses should look at employing bright kids straight out of school and giving them on the job training so that the best paid jobs aren't perceived as being limited to graduates.

My expectation is that this is what will happen and that the universities will be the big losers, because the brightest kids - the ones who usually go on to PhDs and research - will be able to set out straight into industry. Businesses would be crazy not to look at the A-Level students who are in the top % intelligent/practical and who aren't keen on getting into debt and so someone is bound to start picking of the best 18 year olds - then everyone else will follow suit.