Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is considering a crackdown on foreign students who bring dependents and pursue “low-quality” degrees after net migration to the UK hit a record 500,000.
According to the Daily Mail, the UK government is considering putting obstacles in the way of loved ones of international students and limiting entry to universities with lower rankings in order to cut down on overall numbers.
Suella Braverman, the home secretary, has previously expressed her displeasure with foreign students “bringing in family members who can piggyback on their student visa” and “propping up, frankly, substandard courses in inadequate institutions.” This would be in line with the proposals she is currently considering.
Last year, there were an estimated 504,000 more immigrants arriving in the UK than leaving; this number is greater than Liverpool’s population.
The estimates were created by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), which claimed that “unusual” factors like visa programs for citizens of Hong Kong and Ukraine as well as an increase in students from outside the European Union as a result of the removal of COVID restrictions were to blame for the rise.
The majority of long-term non-EU immigration, or 277,000 or 39% of the total, was made up of persons who were coming on study visas, according to the ONS.
The official spokesman for the prime minister emphasized that Mr. Sunak was “completely committed” to reducing overall immigration numbers and attributed the record high to “unusual and exceptional circumstances.”
The official said:
“We’re considering all options to make sure the immigration system is delivering, and that does include looking at the issue of student dependents and low-quality degrees.”
Other departments in Whitehall, including the Department for Education, would oppose such a shift, raising questions about how institutions would be funded if the number of high-fee paying overseas students were reduced.
High numbers of international students “should be considered as a UK success story,” according to the Russell Group of prestigious universities, which also cited statistics showing that 97.5% of those with study visas leave when their permission to do so expires.
Sky News has learned that the Home Office is more concerned with stopping small boat crossings, or what it refers to as “illegal immigration,” and has not advanced plans for a crackdown on student visas since the home secretary indicated she would consider them in October.
