Extract from Education
Questions: Overseas Students
(North West Leicestershire)
(Con): As my hon. Friend has said, international
students provide a wealth of benefits to our universities. What
steps are the Government taking to ensure that the UK higher
education sector remains a welcoming place for students from
foreign countries?
The Minister for Universities, Science, Research and
Innovation (Joseph Johnson): It is a welcoming place, as
attested to by the fact that this year, for the sixth year in a
row, we have 170,000 international students coming into our
system, which is a record number. We want that to continue. The
work of the British Council contributes to that, as does the work
of the GREAT campaign. I will be in India in November drumming up
business for our universities, and I expect that other Ministers
will do so too.
Sir (Twickenham) (LD):
What action is the Minister taking in respect of overseas
students on vocational courses who need to do work experience,
which is regarded as illegal working by the Home Office, leading
to unnecessary and heartbreaking deportations?
: The right hon.
Gentleman raises an important question. We must ensure that our
offer for international students is competitive in all respects
and that they feel they will get the kind of provision that suits
their needs and opportunities to learn in a workplace
environment. We will study his comments with interest.
(Glasgow North West)
(SNP): The Minister is quite right that we are doing
well with international students, particularly from China and
India, but universities across the UK are losing out in the
recruitment of students from Australia, New Zealand, Canada and
the US, because the UK has one of the least competitive policies
on post-study work in the English-speaking world. Will he commit
to work with the Home Secretary to reinstate the post-study work
visa?
: The hon. Lady will
be encouraged, I hope, by the pilots that the Home Office has
recently undertaken with a number of institutions—four, I believe
—to enable a more liberal post-study work regime. The Home Office
and the Department for Education are examining that pilot
carefully, and it is our ambition that when circumstances allow,
it can be extended more broadly across the sector.
Extracts from second
reading debate (Commons) of the EU (Withdrawal) Bill
Mr (Tottenham)
(Lab):...We have heard so much from the
Secretaries of State for Brexit and for International Trade about
how easy this will be. When they go to negotiate with Donald
Trump, who is one of the most protectionist Presidents the United
States has seen, he will surely want access to our
pharmaceuticals and will demand access to our agriculture. It
will not be easy; it will take months and years to reach that
trade deal. As for those who spend so much time on free movement
of people and immigration, when we go to negotiate with
the Indians, will they not demand visas for
people to come to this country?..
Mr (Preston)
(Lab/Co-op):...The scenario looks likely to be as
follows. In 2019, the Government will either get no trade deal, a
very bad one involving tariffs, or something akin to a WTO trade
deal. The deal will be put to Parliament and the people, and
people the length and breadth of the country will see that that
deal is bad. I believe that the mood in this country will change
from being 52% in favour of leaving to quite the reverse. A deal
with the US, China and/or India will be embryonic, if not
very distant, on the day before Brexit. EU law will then become
UK law. The day after that, the Government will start doing what
they have been threatening to do for generations—they will set
about health and safety regulations, employment regulations,
consumer law that protects citizens, and environmental
regulations...
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