Student Visas

House of Commons Home Affairs Committee

Student Visas

Seventh Report of Session 2010–11

Volume I: Report, together with formal minutes, oral and written evidence

Additional written evidence is contained in Volume II, available on the Committee website at www.parliament.uk/homeaffcom

Ordered by the House of Commons to be printed 15 March 2011

HC 773 Published on 17 March 2011 by authority of the House of Commons London: The Stationery Office Limited £22.00

The Home Affairs Committee

The Home Affairs Committee is appointed by the House of Commons to examine the expenditure, administration, and policy of the Home Office and its associated public bodies.

Current membership Rt Hon Keith Vaz MP (Labour, Leicester East) (Chair) Nicola Blackwood MP (Conservative, Oxford West and Abingdon) James Clappison MP (Conservative, Hertsmere) Michael Ellis MP (Conservative, Northampton North) Lorraine Fullbrook MP (Conservative, South Ribble) Dr Julian Huppert MP (Liberal Democrat, Cambridge) Steve McCabe MP (Labour, Birmingham Selly Oak) Rt Hon Alun Michael MP (Labour & Co-operative, Cardiff South and Penarth) Bridget Phillipson MP (Labour, Houghton and Sunderland South) Mark Reckless MP (Conservative, Rochester and Strood) Mr David Winnick MP (Labour, Walsall North)

The following members were also members of the committee during the parliament.

Mr Aidan Burley MP (Conservative, Cannock Chase) Mary Macleod MP (Conservative, Brentford and Isleworth)

Powers The Committee is one of the departmental select committees, the powers of which are set out in House of Commons Standing Orders, principally in SO No 152. These are available on the Internet via www.parliament.uk.

Publication The Reports and evidence of the Committee are published by The Stationery Office by Order of the House. All publications of the Committee (including press notices) are on the Internet at www.parliament.uk/homeaffairscom.

Committee staff The current staff of the Committee are Elizabeth Flood (Clerk), Joanna Dodd (Second Clerk), Sarah Petit (Committee Specialist), Eleanor Scarnell (Inquiry Manager), Darren Hackett (Senior Committee Assistant), Sheryl Dinsdale (Committee Assistant), Victoria Butt (Committee Assistant), and Alex Paterson (Select Committee Media Officer).

Contacts All correspondence should be addressed to the Clerk of the Home Affairs Committee, House of Commons, 7 Millbank, London SW1P 3JA. The telephone number for general enquiries is 020 7219 3276; the Committee’s email address is [email protected].

Contents

Report Page

1 Background 3 The Government’s proposals 3 Public interest in the student immigration system consultation 5

2 International students in the UK 6 Student Visitor Visas 7 How the UK benefits from international students 8 Safeguarding the future of the UK knowledge economy 10 The UK and the international market in Higher Education 12

3 The Government’s proposals 15 Increasing the required minimum level of English language ability from B1 to B2 on the Common European Framework 15 Requirement of a Secure English Language Test (SELT) 17 Academic progression 18 Requiring students to return home to apply for a different course. 18 The closure of the Post Study Work Route 20 Term time work 25 Work placements 27 Dependants 28 Low Risk/High Risk 29 Accreditation of language schools 30 Further recommendations 32 Discretion of Entry Clearance Managers 32 Accreditation of agents 32 Further recommendations received in evidence 33 Impact Assessments 34

4 Ensuring the future viability of the Student Immigration system 36 The International Passenger Survey 36 Exit Checks 37

5 Conclusions 40

Conclusions and recommendations 41

Appendix 1: Answers to Parliamentary Questions 47

Appendix 2: National Qualifications Framework 58

Appendix 3: List of Highly Trusted Sponsors 60

Appendix 4: Allocation of student visas by nationality 2005–10 86

Appendix 5: International students who studied in the UK 92

Appendix 6: Financial Times Global MBA Ranking Table 2010 95

Appendix 7: Number of International Students at UK Universities 97

Formal Minutes 109

Witnesses 113

List of printed written evidence 113

List of additional written evidence 114

List of Reports from the Committee during the current Parliament 116

1 Background

1. When we published our Report into the Government’s proposals for an immigration cap on skilled workers from outside the European Economic Area, we noted the Government’s intention of examining the criteria for admitting non-EEA students and we said that we would also inquire into this issue.1 We announced our inquiry on 7 December 2010, the same day that the Government announced its public consultation on the student immigration system (technically Tier 4 of the points–based system for non-EEA migrants). Our terms of reference were as follows:

• Whether the cuts in student visas should be limited to certain types of courses (e.g. pre- degree level);

• The impact different levels of cuts might have on the various sectors;

• The impact, if any, that reductions in student visas might have on the UK’s standing in the world;

• Whether cuts in student visas would have any effect on the decisions of highly qualified graduates to conduct research or take up teaching posts in the UK;

• Whether the post study work route should be continued;

• The educational routes through which students come to the UK to study at degree level; and

• International comparisons.

Many of these reflect the proposals in the Government’s consultation document which are listed below.

2. We launched our inquiry at a roundtable discussion in Oxford on 13 December 2010 with representatives from the three sectors most likely to be affected by the consultation— higher education, further education and English language schools. During the course of the inquiry we also travelled to Brighton in order to meet staff and students in English language schools to discuss their particular concerns. We received 61 pieces of written evidence and held three oral evidence sessions. We took evidence from representatives from the three affected sectors—higher education, further education and English language schools. We also took evidence from MigrationWatch UK and Ministers from the Home Office, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. We are grateful to all who submitted evidence or participated in our informal meetings.

The Government’s proposals 3. Our inquiry focused on the main issues arising from the Government’s proposals: we did not take evidence on each of the specific proposals. If a consultation proposal is not

1 First report, Home Affairs Committee, 2010–11

discussed below, it does not imply support or outright rejection of that proposal, rather it means that we do not express an opinion on it. The Government’s consultation contained the following proposals:

• Raising the level of courses students can study. Only Highly Trusted Sponsors will be able to offer courses to adult students at National Qualification Levels 3, 4 and 5 (Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework Levels 6, 7 and 8);

• Introducing tougher entry criteria for students other than child students;

• Ensuring students return overseas after their course;

• Limiting the entitlements to work and sponsor dependants;

• Simpler procedures for checking low-risk applications; and

• Stricter accreditation procedures for education providers in the private sector.2

4. Our predecessor Committee reported on the problem of bogus colleges.3 That problem has been tackled in recent years and the Government’s focus may have somewhat shifted from bogus colleges to bogus students. This was reinforced by the Minister for Universities and Science:

I think that picture of a kind of PO Box with absolutely no education activity going on, or a single room above a fish and chip shop as the bogus college, I think the effective action by the UK Border Agency has made great progress in eliminating those. The attention is shifting more to people who maybe do not have the education or qualifications they claim to have, perhaps colleges that have rather lax procedures for checking qualifications. So it is the under-qualified or inappropriate student, which I detect from my conversations with the Home Office is increasingly the focus, rather than those absolutely unacceptable and absurd abuses where I believe, and the UK Border Agency say are probably diminishing now.4

There has clearly been considerable progress towards eliminating bogus colleges but it is important for the UK Border Agency to maintain vigilance and there has to be a simpler system of accreditation for colleges, particularly language colleges, in order to provide confidence that the system cannot be abused.

5. There has been a lack of clarity about whether the Government’s principal aim is to place a cap on the number of student visas issued each year as it did previously with Tiers 1 and 2 of the migration system or to deter those seeking to abuse the student visa system in order to work and settle in the UK. The Government has stated it does not intend to place a cap on student visas, arguing that its proposals are aimed at tightening the system rather than cutting down on the number of genuine students. On 24 January 2011, the Minister for Immigration said in the House of Commons:

2 P7 The Student Immigration System: A Consultation, UKBA 3 Bogus Colleges, Eleventh Report of Session 2008—09, HC 595 4 Q337

It [student visas] is an extremely important part of the overall reduction that we need. Taking action on students is particularly important as they make up roughly two thirds of non-European economic area immigrants, and the number of student visas issued has been rising in recent years. Getting a proper grip on the out-of- control system that we inherited requires action on all the main routes of immigration, and that is precisely what the Government will do.5

On 8 February, during an adjournment debate on the issue the Minister said: “We want to encourage all those genuine students coming here to study at our world-class academic institutions.”6 This was reiterated on 9 February when the Prime Minister told the House: “I can tell the hon. Gentleman that we are not currently looking at limits on tier 4 immigration visas”7, emphasising instead the need to crack down on bogus colleges and students.

6. We are in agreement with the Government that any cap on student visas would be unnecessary and undesirable. Any cap could seriously damage the UK’s higher education industry and international reputation. We fully support the Government in seeking to eliminate bogus colleges and deterring bogus students from even attempting to enter the UK. Our predecessor Committee produced a Report on bogus colleges in the last Parliament and we note the Minister’s suggestion that the UK Border Agency has become more effective in closing them.

Public interest in the student immigration system consultation 7. The Government’s consultation received over 31,000 responses, including submissions from four foreign Governments—India, China, Japan and Canada have all raised concerns regarding the Government’s proposals.8 The number of respondents is high for a public consultation and far exceeds the number of organisations which would be directly affected by the proposals.

8. There has been press interest in these proposals and several reports have been published by think tanks and analysts on the issue.9 Appended to this Report are 22 answers to Parliamentary Questions asked under the heading of student visas since May 2010. We note that in addition to these, there were 200 Parliamentary Questions asked under the heading of ‘International students’, ‘Overseas students’ and ‘Tier 4’. As these are all publicly available, we have decided not to include these in this report but we feel that such a high number shows the depth of feeling which this issue inspires.

5 HC Deb 24 Jan 2011 : Column 8 6 HC Deb 8 Feb 2011 : Column 278 7 HC Deb 9 Feb 2011 : Column 291 8 Q369 9 For example, the Centre on Migration, Policy and Society (COMPAS) held a breakfast briefing under the heading of ‘What could be the economic impact of a cap on overseas higher education students?’ in October 2010 which highlighted the importance of international students to the economy.

2 International students in the UK

9. For the purposes of this Report, an international student is a student from outside the European Economic Area (EEA). A student from an EU Member State, Norway, Iceland or Lichtenstein10 does not have to apply for a visa to study here and pays the same fees as a UK student. As the rules governing Tier 4 currently stand, in order to study in the United Kingdom a student must have a Certificate of Acceptance from a sponsoring institution and prove that he or she has sufficient funds for fees and maintenance. For foundation degrees and courses at the National Qualification Framework (NQF) level of 6—degree level—and above there is currently no need to prove English Language ability (a table setting out the NQF levels is appended to this Report11). For those below NQF level 6, there is a minimum requirement that they have reached Council of Europe Framework Reference (included later in this Report) level B1 for English which is :

Can understand the main points of clear standard input on familiar matters regularly encountered in work, school, leisure, etc. Can deal with most situations likely to arise while travelling in an area where the language is spoken. Can produce simple connected text on topics which are familiar or of personal interest. Can describe experiences and events, dreams, hopes and ambitions and briefly give reasons and explanations for opinions and plans.

We were told that this roughly equated to a GCSE level comprehension of English.12 International students are not allowed to apply for public funds or housing whilst studying in the UK and can work for up to 20 hours a week but only in temporary positions: employers are not allowed to hire an international student to fill a permanent vacancy.13

10. Some 237214 institutions are listed on the UK Border Agency’s register of Tier 4 sponsors. These institutions are rated as A, B or Highly Trusted Sponsor. When institutions first apply they are given an A or B rating. B rating indicates that the UK Border Agency believes that an institution could pose a risk to immigration control or that it does not have all the correct systems in place to check the credentials of would-be students and ensure their compliance with immigration rules. B-rated sponsors must follow a sponsorship action plan designed to help them become A-rated, or they risk losing their licence. Any A-rated sponsor can apply for Highly Trusted Sponsor status which allows them to offer courses at below NQF level 3 and those courses below degree level that include a work placement. There are currently 791 Highly Trusted Sponsor institutions on the list of sponsors.15

11. A total of 334,815 visas were issued under Tier 4 in 2010, which represents a 2% decrease on the previous year.16 This total includes 49,195 student visitor visas which are

10 Which together comprise the EEA 11 Appendix 2 12 Q28 13 Ev w39—Immigration Law Practitioners' Association (ILPA) (SV33) 14 These figures are correct as of 1 March 2011. For more information please visit www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk 15 These figures are correct as of 1 March 2011. See Appendix 3 to this report 16 rds.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs11/control-immigration-q4-2010.pdf

valid for 11 months and do not allow the student to work for any period of time whilst in the country. Appended to this report is a table which shows a breakdown of student visas issued between 2005 and 2010 by country.17 We have compiled a table of the top 20 source countries using the total number of visas issued in the previous six years.

STUDENT VISAS ISSUED - Grand Nationality 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 Total

1* INDIA 16592 20579 22018 27871 58158 42545 187763

2 CHINA 18182 21055 23727 27935 37235 44234 172368

3 PAKISTAN 8639 11517 10426 7960 12657 24485 75684

4 UNITED STATES 8930 9111 11200 14268 14760 14477 72746

5 NIGERIA 6856 7036 8385 9666 11205 10948 54096

6 SOUTH KOREA 8194 7297 6857 6556 5738 6488 41130

7 BANGLADESH 2961 3375 3443 3313 17449 8989 39530

8 TURKEY 7084 8531 8151 5302 5835 4212 39115

9 TAIWAN 9298 9601 6957 4337 3799 3535 37527

10 JAPAN 8423 8079 6864 5599 4375 3760 37100

11 SAUDI ARABIA 2643 3118 3027 6147 9443 8090 32468

12 MALAYSIA 4423 3392 3902 4142 6071 6284 28214

13 THAILAND 3379 4003 4005 4468 4706 5085 25646

14 COLOMBIA 2795 3041 4369 5379 4137 3556 23277

15 SRI LANKA 1779 2374 2503 3309 5546 7583 23094

16 RUSSIA 3341 4868 3832 3800 3123 3160 22124

17 BRAZIL 4474 3268 3926 4581 3023 2262 21534

18 KAZAKHSTAN 4906 5614 4187 1415 2020 2121 20263

19 PHILIPPINES 403 623 1245 5939 7700 3772 19682

20 HONG KONG 1981 2269 2476 2785 3532 5317 18360 Compiled from table produced on the basis of Home Office answers to Written Parliamentary Questions 40890 and 43770

* The ranking is assigned on the basis of total visas over the 2005–10 period, which is why India is rated as number 1 despite having fewer student visas issued than China in 2010

Student Visitor Visas 12. The student visitor visa is aimed at those who wish to study English language at a school in the United Kingdom. The student visitor visa, a six-month visa, was extended to up to 11 months in December 2010. This extension is a pilot and was introduced in order to ensure that students are able to attain the Council of Europe Framework Reference level B1 which is currently required in order to study under the Tier 4 general student visa.

17 Appendix 4

There is no minimum language requirement for the student visitor visa and those who have a student visitor visa cannot sponsor dependants or work. Some witnesses were confused whether student visitor visas are included in the net migration figures: in fact, they are not.

How the UK benefits from international students 13. International students make up 10% of first degree students and over 40% of postgraduate students at UK universities.18 It is important to note that international students do not take up places that could otherwise be taken up by UK students. They pay more than UK students for their courses and, in effect, subsidise the educational system in the UK—under current arrangements the average fee for a non EEA student was £8600 in comparison to £2200 for an EEA student19 and the Independent Migration Advisory Committee found that international students contribute 37% of the total university income from fees.20 Most universities are educational charities and therefore any surplus in income is usually invested in improving facilities and increasing the size or pay of the work force.

14. International students are vital to the status of universities—the Higher Education World University rankings use the number of international students and staff as a measure of success. International students can form an important alumni network for universities and this can be especially important in research—not only may students introduce different research methods whilst at university but they may also develop links allowing them to continue to collaborate on projects with UK-based researchers when they return to their home country.21

15. Professor Steve Smith informed us that education is the UK’s seventh largest export industry22, and a number of those who submitted evidence pointed out that after financial services, it is the second biggest contributor to the UK’s net balance of payments.23 International students are reported to contribute up to £12.5 billion24 annually to the UK economy and the Education and Training export industry is estimated by the sector to be worth up to £40 billion25 to the UK economy. The UK is the second most popular destination for international students (after the USA) and it has been estimated that for every ten international students, three full time equivalent jobs are created in the UK.26 In their November 2010 report ‘From austerity to prosperity: Seven priorities for the long term’, McKinsey & Company cited higher education as an attractive growth industry for

18 UKCISA Higher Education Statistics – www.ukcisa.org.uk/about/statistics_he.php 19 Analysis of the Points Based System, Migration Advisory Committee, December 2009, para. 7.15 20 Analysis of the Points Based System, Migration Advisory Committee, December 2009, para. 7.14 21 Ev w11—London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (SV8) 22 Q62 23 Ev w18—The Northern Consortium (SV12), Ev w21—Study Group UK (SV13), Ev w57—Navitas (UK) (SV36), Ev w98— Cambridge Education Group (SV52), Ev w104—Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants (JCWI) (SV54) 24 Ev w48—Immigration Law Practitioners' Association (ILPA) (SV33), Ev w54—Migrants' Rights Network (MRN) (SV35), Ev w66 Goldsmiths Students' Union (SV39), Ev19—National Union of Students (SV50) 25 Ev w21— Study Group UK (SV13), Ev w57—Navitas (UK) (SV36), Ev w98—Cambridge Education Group (SV52), Ev w104 —Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants (JCWI) (SV54) 26www.compas.ox.ac.uk/fileadmin/files/pdfs/Non_WP_pdfs/Events_2010/COMPAS%20Breakfast%20Briefing%20Summary %20Sarah%20Crofts%2010%20December%20Amended.pdf

the UK on the basis that there is a large growth market, the UK has market leading brands, there is a competitive opportunity and it delivers benefit to all regions.27 This is not disputed by Ministers or those involved in higher education.

16. As an ‘exporter’ of education (primarily educating international students in the UK) the UK is considered to be very strong with an average international student enrolment of up to 20%. By contrast, the UK is not a significant ‘importer’ of education as only 3% of UK students study abroad.28 The 2010 CBI Education and Skills survey found that “over two thirds of employers (71%) are not satisfied with the foreign language skills of young people and over half (55%) perceive shortfalls in their international cultural awareness.”29

17. Perhaps reflecting this, the Minister for Universities and Science highlighted the desirability of sending British students to study abroad:

I personally urge British students to do more to go and study abroad and I find that a very good way of having a conversation with, for example, the Indian Education Minister is to discuss how we can also increase—I think from memory it is—the 500 British students currently studying in India, because there are some excellent institutions in India and it is a great way of broadening people’s minds.30

Recent reports have suggested that the fact that a growing number of foreign universities teach both degree and postgraduate courses in English and the introduction of top-up fees may well inspire a generation of students to study overseas.31

18. The benefit to the UK from international students continues when they return to their home countries. Many of the respondents to our inquiry suggested that the UK gained significant ‘soft power’—international influence—through the goodwill generated among international students who had studied in the UK.32 Simeon Underwood, Academic Registrar of the LSE told us that:

There are certain countries around the world—I think the recent examples ... would be Brunei, Singapore, Malaysia, Greece where I am afraid to say several of the recent Finance Ministers have been LSE graduates—where actually graduates of the LSE dominate public life. This is very much part of what an LSE or an Imperial is about. Our concern obviously is that that dries up over time. It is not just about, if you like, the drying up of the students we recruit or the drying up of alumni donations, but the drying up of influence, whether through the LSE or through Government.33

27 P51 ‘From austerity to prosperity: Seven priorities for the long term, McKinsey & Company, November 2010 28 ‘Gee up the global vision’, The Times Higher Education Supplement, 10 February 2011 29 P23, CBI Education and Skills survey 2010 30 Q338 31 www.guardian.co.uk/education/2011/mar/06/university-europe-no-debt 32 Ev w23—The University of Warwick (SV18), Ev w30—London School of Business and Finance (SV22), Ev w57—Navitas (UK) (SV36), Ev w79—Chair of the Universities UK Working Group (SV45) 33 Q118

Imperial College told us that 38% of their international students were from the BRIC nations (Brazil, Russia, India and China), the developing economies with which the Government has indicated it wishes to enhance links.34

19. Ministers from both the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills highlighted the importance of this ‘soft power’. David Willetts MP emphasised that:

you do come across ministers in other countries, business people, who have very fond memories of studying at university here and it is very hard to measure precisely, but I think it is a source of enormous good will.35

Mr Jeremy Browne MP said that:

one of the greatest opportunities Britain has to project itself on the global stage, if you like, is the quality and reputation of our education, particularly our higher education, but right through to independent schools and elsewhere, and it has a substantial immediate financial benefit to those institutions and to our economy as a whole, but it has a longer-lasting reputational benefit, because there are extraordinarily large numbers of people right around the world in positions of influence in politics, business and elsewhere, who have studied at British institutions, and we are keen to use that opportunity to continue to have that kind of influence.36

He underlined that:

Britain’s place in the world is not just a league table of GDP, and we have all kinds of influence, which is beyond our economic strength, and one of those, possibly the greatest of all, is the reputation of our universities and broader education sector, and this gives us a huge amount of influence and goodwill and friendship.37

20. By educating the potential future leaders of these countries, the UK has an opportunity for a life-long advocacy. Former American President Bill Clinton studied at Oxford University and the current Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh studied at Cambridge University. Appended to this Report is an indicative list of some of the recent influential positions held by alumni from British Universities.38

Safeguarding the future of the UK knowledge economy 21. During the course of our inquiry, it has become clear to us that there are certain sectors of higher education which rely heavily on international students, primarily business, science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

34 Q119 35 Q357 36 Q386 37 Q400 38 Appendix 5

22. As we discuss later, business schools are an extremely successful sector in the education export industry. With the London Business School rated as the number 1 business school in the world by the Financial Times and ten of the top 50 business schools in the world based in the UK, this sector ought to be considered a jewel in the UK’s crown. We seek assurances from the Government that any proposed changes to the student visa regime are examined for their impact on the viability and success of UK business schools.

23. The submission from the Universities UK Working Group stated that in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics, many courses are made viable only by a substantial proportion of enrolments from outside the UK and EU.39 Professor Steve Smith reiterated this point when talking about international students working in the UK after graduation: “39% of international students study the very subjects that the CBI and everyone tells us are in high demand, namely the STEM subjects, the science subjects. It is hardly surprising that they stay, because the UK knowledge economy needs these graduates’40

24. The future of the UK knowledge economy appears to be reliant on international students, at least in the short term. The Migrants Rights Network point out that in 2008, the Work Foundation published a report which emphasised the significance of international students “in building the UK’s position in the global knowledge economy – for which there is considerable competition among OECD countries.”41 The Work Foundation cited Lord Leitch’s 2006 report on long term skills needs which

found that whilst the UK’s skills profile had improved markedly against historical standards—the UK’s skills base has suffered from historic deficits—it still remained mediocre in comparison with other EU countries. The review concludes that, even if the current targets for skills are to be met, the UK’s skill base will still lag behind with severe consequences for international competitiveness.42

This is further reinforced in the evidence submitted to us by Cancer Research UK:

Cuts to Tier 4 could significantly restrict recruitment of non-EU PhD students. This could prevent us from recruiting the best, most capable students, whatever their background, which in turn would have significant bearing on our research. The potential impact of this is that the quality of research will be lowered, and the UK’s standing as an international competitor in cancer research could be jeopardised. Cancer Research UK is committed to conducting the highest quality research. Our PhD Programmes are formal programmes in conjunction with leading universities. They are highly competitive, with large numbers of applications. Overseas students are in direct competition with UK and EU students, all of whom undergo an extensive selection process, which usually includes a face-to-face interview and collection of references.43

39 Ev w79—Chair of the Universities UK Working Group (SV45) 40 Q66 41 Ev w54—Migrants' Rights Network (MRN) (SV35) 42 P28 www.theworkfoundation.com/assets/docs/publications/30_globalisation.pdf 43 Ev w75—Cancer Research UK (SV43)

We urge the Government to safeguard the UK knowledge economy when introducing any proposed changes to the student immigration system. We hope that, in the near future, we will reach a point where we are able to recruit the majority of the required skills from the domestic market but at present, we must rely on international students in order to ensure our international competitiveness.

The UK and the international market in Higher Education 25. English is now seen as the international language in many fields, notably business, medicine, law and science. For that reason a degree taught in English is valued highly across the world. UK higher education is particularly lauded: according to some analysts, the UK is the home to three of the world’s top 10 Universities (and five of Europe’s top 10).44 The UK has one in a hundred of the world’s population but one in seven of the world’s top 200 Universities.45. The UK is also the home of some of the world’s most highly rated business schools. The London Business School was rated the highest in the world, together with nine other UK business schools which made it into the Financial Times list of top 50 business schools 2010 (appended to this Report).46 The combination of prestigious institutions and the English language makes the UK highly competitive in the international market place for higher education.

26. Higher education is estimated to be growing at 7% per year47 and the UK’s international competitors are becoming increasingly active in efforts to increase their market share. The United States is still the world leader in the export of higher education but between 2000 and 2008 its share of the market fell from 24% to 19% whereas the UK managed to increase its market share in the same period by 1%, to 11%.48 The UK’s main competitors are traditionally other Anglophone countries—the USA, Australia, Canada and New Zealand—but in recent years there are examples of non-Anglophone countries providing higher education in English including major competitors such as Germany (9% market share) and France (7% market share).49 Moreover, governments are seeking to increase higher education provision in two of the main source countries—China and India.50

27. Some witnesses were concerned that the very act of consulting about restrictions to student visas has already made the UK seem less welcoming to international students. Witnesses argued that two of our biggest competitors in the Higher Education sector—the USA and Australia—both suffered a decline in applications at the time they tightened up regulation of student visas in 2002 and 2010 respectively. Both countries have since made a number of adjustments in order to stimulate re-growth in the sector. In other words, UK universities are facing aggressive competition in a market which is vital for their future and for the UK economy. When we put this to the Minister for Immigration, however, he said

44 The Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2010-11 45 Ev w79—Chair of the Universities UK Working Group (SV45) 46 rankings.ft.com/businessschoolrankings/global-mba-rankings: See Appendix 6 47 P51 ‘From austerity to prosperity: Seven priorities for the long term, McKinsey & Company, November 2010 48 Table C2.7 Education at a glance 2010: OECD indicators 49 Q73 50 www.eastasiaforum.org/2010/08/11/private-higher-education-in-china-and-india/

that circumstances beyond the change of visa regulations needed to be taken into account when considering the cause of the decline, for example 9/11 in the USA and riots against Indian students in Australia.51

28. The Australian Government has since published a report on its student visa programme in which it states that student visa applications fell by 18.9% between 2008-09 and 2009-10. The range of reasons given for the decline reflects the comments made by the Minister for Immigration:

the global financial crisis; escalated concerns about the welfare of international students studying in Australia; ongoing college closures creating uncertainty about the stability of Australian education providers; the rising value of the Australian dollar; and the introduction of a range of changes to visa processing to improve the integrity of the student visa program.52

This report also contains a table showing student visa applications by region. In order, the five biggest source countries of international students to Australia are China, India, South Korea, Nepal and Vietnam. Whilst the steepest decline was in applications from Indian students, there was also a decline in applications from China, South Korea and Nepal. In fact the table listed the 15 biggest source countries and showed a decline in applications from 10 out of the 15.53

29. This would indicate that whilst the riots, cited by the Minister for Immigration as the reason for the decline, were certainly a factor, they were not the only factor, and that ongoing college closures creating uncertainty about the stability of Australian education providers and the introduction of a range of changes to visa processing to improve the integrity of the student visa program should not be overlooked in considering the potential impact of changes to the UK student visa system. It must be remembered that any tightening of visa regulation would result in a headline reduction of student numbers even if the changes only affected bogus students.

30. We heard evidence that Australia were launching an aggressive marketing campaign in order to increase their share of the international education market at the expense of the UK. Tony Millns of English UK (a sector body, representing English language schools) told us that:

international education is a growth sector of the economy and likely to be a very important part of the knowledge economy of the future. I have here the International Students Strategy for Australia running up to 2014. It is Australia’s third largest export sector. They have grown it from 47,000 students in 1990 to 500,000, i.e. more than 10 times, in 2009, and they are aggressively attacking us.54

51 Q319 52 P7 Student Visa Program report 2010-11 to December 2010, Department of Immigration and Citizenship, Australian Government 53 P65 ibid 54 Q46

31. When we questioned the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs as to whether he had received representations concerning immigration, specifically student immigration, from the countries he was responsible for, he replied: “It gets raised in the course of conversations. I have to say it was raised more frequently when I first became a Minister in the first month of the Government than it does now.”55 When probed further he said “I cannot remember it being raised specifically in the last month or two in a general conversation”56, adding that

“I think as the Government’s proposals have become better understood and the consultation process has evolved, those concerns in some cases have been allayed, but obviously the final arrangements the British Government intends to put in place have not yet been announced.”57

However, our sister committee, the Business, Innovation and Skills Committee, who have recently returned from China as part of an inquiry into trade and investment have told us of: “significant concerns from UK universities and businesses in China about the negative impact of the visa regime and proposed immigration cap on the UK economy.” 58 They also reported that there “was now a perception in China that Chinese students were “getting kicked out” of the UK”59 and added that a number of UK universities had experienced difficulties in obtaining visas for Chinese students studying under joint UK/Chinese university programmes.

32. The international student market is estimated to be worth £40 billion to the UK economy. Education is a growth market and the UK is the second most popular destination in the world for international students. Some of the world’s leading institutions are based in the UK and we have a history of hosting international students who go on to promote Britain abroad. There is a highly competitive world market in attracting international students and as well as facing competition from English- speaking countries, many non-Anglophone countries are now providing higher education courses in English. The past experiences of the USA and Australia in reforming their visa systems highlight the sensitivity of the international market in education to countries’ student visa regimes, and it would be wise for the UK to bear this very much in mind.

55 Q368 56 Q368 57 Q369 58 Ev w118—Business Innovation and Skills Committee (SV60) 59 Ev w118—Business Innovation and Skills Committee (SV60)

3 The Government’s proposals

Increasing the required minimum level of English language ability from B1 to B2 on the Common European Framework 33. The proposal to increase the required language level from B1 to B2 on the Common European Framework was one of the areas which excited most debate amongst our witnesses. At present the minimum level, B1, is roughly equivalent to a GCSE standard of English. According to Tony Millns of English UK the proposed level of B2 is equivalent to “very broadly, a high grade A level on to, perhaps, first year of a degree course.”60

Level Description

A1 Can understand and use familiar everyday expressions and very basic phrases aimed at the satisfaction of needs of a concrete type. Can introduce him/herself and others and can ask and answer questions about personal details such as where he/she lives, people he/she knows and things he/she has. Can interact in a simple way provided the other person talks slowly and clearly and is prepared to help.

A2 Can understand sentences and frequently used expressions related to areas of most immediate relevance (e.g. very basic personal and family information, shopping, local geography, employment). Can communicate in simple and routine tasks requiring a simple and direct exchange of information on familiar and routine matters. Can describe in simple terms aspects of his/her background, immediate environment and matters in areas of immediate need.

B1 Can understand the main points of clear standard input on familiar matters regularly encountered in work, school, leisure, etc. Can deal with most situations likely to arise whilst travelling in an area where the language is spoken. Can produce simple connected text on topics which are familiar or of personal interest. Can describe experiences and events, dreams, hopes & ambitions and briefly give reasons and explanations for opinions and plans.

B2 Can understand the main ideas of complex text on both concrete and abstract topics, including technical discussions in his/her field of specialisation. Can interact with a degree of fluency and spontaneity that makes regular interaction with native speakers quite possible without strain for either party. Can produce clear, detailed text on a wide range of subjects and explain a viewpoint on a topical issue giving the advantages and disadvantages of various options.

C1 Can understand a wide range of demanding, longer texts, and recognise implicit meaning. Can express him/herself fluently and spontaneously without much obvious searching for expressions. Can use language flexibly and effectively for social, academic and professional purposes. Can produce clear, well-structured, detailed text on complex subjects, showing controlled use of organisational patterns, connectors and cohesive devices.

C2 Can understand with ease virtually everything heard or read. Can summarise information from different spoken and written sources, reconstructing arguments and accounts in a coherent presentation. Can express him/herself spontaneously, very fluently and precisely, differentiating finer shades of meaning even in the most complex situations.

34. There are a number of barriers to international students achieving B1 level without a period of UK study. Firstly, it is extremely difficult to become fluent in a language without living in a country where it is widely spoken. Furthermore, in many countries teaching is

60 Q27

didactic in style, based on whole classes learning by rote together, whereas in the UK, students in further education are expected to be able to engage in independent study. Also, the English education system is based on 13 years of schooling, in contrast to most Commonwealth countries which have a 12 year system. That is why a number of institutions run courses intended to ensure that students are capable of undertaking a British degree programme, which are known as pathway programmes or international foundation degrees.

35. The proposal to increase the minimum language level would mainly have an impact on those students coming to study the English language. English language schools contribute roughly £1.5 billion to the economy and are estimated to be responsible for 30,000 jobs. It is a sector which boosts tourism and provides a vital route for international students to achieve necessary language skills for UK degree courses. Under the current rules, a Tier 4 General Student visa has a minimum language level requirement at B1 and anecdotal evidence suggests that some students are studying English in other English speaking countries (especially Canada and Australia). However, the Government has recently extended the student visitor visa up to 11 months. This covers the majority of English Language course lengths. The Committee would like that extension to become permanent. The student visitor visa has no minimum language requirement and applicants cannot sponsor dependants, or work. It is unclear whether the Government intends to formalise these changes to the student visitor route but removing that route, while raising the entry language requirement, would have a potentially calamitous impact on the sector.

36. Pathway providers are either universities themselves or private contractors, often linked to a particular university, which teach a ‘pathway programme’ or ‘international foundation year’—a course which can last up to 18 months. The course usually has three aspects: English language ability, study skills and subject knowledge. These courses are either formally validated or officially recognised by a partner university. Many pathway providers are based on the campuses of their partner universities and enjoy a very close working relationship. Universities UK estimate that in 2007-08, 46% of international students came via pathway providers.61 Several pathway providers estimate that roughly 70% of their students arrive in the UK with a language level of A1-B2.62 At present 50% of the pathway provision market is operated by five organisations in conjunction with universities.63 All five organisations have Highly Trusted Sponsor status, as do 155 UK universities.

37. Witnesses repeatedly stressed to us the importance of pathway programmes to UK universities and all of them cited the increase of the required language level as a proposal which could significantly damage the recruitment of international students.64 They also assured us that universities would not recruit students whose English was not good enough to enable them to follow the course for which they had registered.

61 P12 Universities UK’s response to The Student Immigration System: A Consultation 62 Ev w42—INTO University Partnerships (SV27), Ev w64—Kaplan International Colleges (KIC) (SV38) 63 Ev w98—Cambridge Education Group (SV52) 64 Q29, 61, 102

38. In addition a number of those who submitted written evidence pointed out that implementing B1 as a minimum language level would impair recruitment in non-English speaking countries where there is little evidence of abuse of the current student visa system (such as Japan, Korea, Taiwan and Saudi Arabia) whilst not having an impact on higher risk countries which have a largely English medium (such as India, Pakistan and Nigeria).65

39. We discussed pathway courses during our evidence session with English UK.

Nicola Blackwood: I just wanted to return to the language proficiency issue for a moment. If the level is increased to B2 I understand that the Government is currently proposing to allow a pre-sessional course of just three months. But if they extended that to one year to allow highly trusted sponsors to offer English language courses and foundation courses specifically for that route that you have mentioned, would that meet the requirements of the industry?

Tony Millns: That would certainly help, or leaving the level 4, NQF level 3, courses currently at B1 would be the other way of doing it. We have discussed both with the Border Agency.66

40. We strongly recommend that the Government does not increase the minimum language level for Highly Trusted Sponsors at any course level. However, if the Government does implement the proposal of increasing the minimum language requirement for the Tier 4 general student visa then it should work with pathway providers to ensure that the student visitor visa is suitable for their courses. We therefore recommend that the student visitor visa is extended to 18 months, that English language and pathway students are entitled to use the route and that the extension is made permanent to ensure certainty for providers in this very important part of the higher education sector. However, if the student visitor route is expanded to accommodate pathway courses, we accept the need for close monitoring of the route.

Requirement of a Secure English Language Test (SELT) 41. To ensure the quality of the assessment of English-language skills, the Government proposes the use of secure English language tests (SELTs). The Russell Group told us that universities currently accept a number of different tests as examining to an appropriate standard. However, the Government’s proposal appears to have the effect that only one test, known as IELTS, would meet the requirement. The Russell Group considered it important that the UK Border Agency did not pose unnecessary restrictions on the choice of language tests available to students or to universities.67 Pearson Language Testing Division, which delivers the Pearson Test of English Academic (PTE Academic), one of the current UK Border Agency approved Secure English Language Tests, highlighted:

some of the misunderstandings of how test scores relate to the Common European Framework—for example, in the Student Immigration System Consultation Document, in paragraph 5.5 it states: "While education providers specify their own

65 Ev 4— Association of Colleges (SV16), Ev 13—UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA) (SV29) 66 Q52 67 Ev w94—Russell International Excellence Group (SV51)

minimum language requirements for nationalities deemed to be lower risk, many universities require language proficiency at IELTS 6.5, which is approximately equivalent to C1 level." Cambridge ESOL (one of the IELTS partners) has recently adjusted this and, according to information on their website, an IELTS 6.5 is a B2 level.68

There thus appears to be scope for confusion not only about which secure English language tests would be appropriate but also about the standard required. The Government must clarify these issues before introducing any change to language requirements.

Academic progression 42. The consultation paper suggested that international students who have completed their courses should not be permitted to start new courses without demonstrating that the subsequent course would be at a higher level—in other words, academic progression should be demonstrated.69 We agree with this principle in so far as it is intended to tackle abuse of the system. However we note that, in some cases, students take back-to-back Masters courses for genuine reasons. This can be to furnish them with additional skills for future doctoral study or, as in the case of the Rhodes Scholarship, because they have a two year scholarship and there are very few two-year degrees at the required level of qualification.70 In many instances doctoral students are originally registered for a Masters degree and formally transfer only late in the first year. We therefore recommend that academic progression be required but that an exception be made available for those who can provide good reasons for studying for a second Masters degree.

Requiring students to return home to apply for a different course. 43. The proposal to require that students return to their home country if they wish to apply for a further course71 is another attempt to ensure that academic courses are not used simply as a means of prolonging a stay in the UK, but it may raise practical difficulties. Students who are progressing from a pathway course to an undergraduate degree or from a masters degree to a doctorate will often have only a short period of time between the two. In some cases, the transfer from a masters to a doctorate is immediate following the successful completion of an exam.72

44. One of our witnesses suggested that an enforced return home between courses could require students to “close their bank account, end their lease and accommodation, pack all their bags and go home and start again at the back of the queue.”73 It would be especially difficult for those students accompanied by dependants attached to the student’s Tier 4 visa as all members of the family would have to return to the home country, possibly

68 Ev w108—Pearson's Language Testing Division (SV55) 69 P15 The Student Immigration System: A Consultation, UKBA 70 www.rhodesscholar.org/get/11/2010_final_brochure_7_6_10.pdf 71 P15 The Student Immigration System: A Consultation, UKBA 72 Ev w111— Oxford University Student Union (SV56) 73 Q203

interrupting their own work or education. As it is likely that this would take place during the peak summer period, this requirement could also have significant financial implications. Whilst we accept that it is possible to close a bank account or end a lease while based in another country, we do understand the difficulties involved.

45. Several witnesses said that requiring international students to return to their home country in order to apply for a new visa is likely to lead them to decide to study in a competitor country rather than re-applying to study in the UK.74 This could have serious implications for the UK at postgraduate level where 40% are international students and fees tend to be much higher than those for undergraduate degrees, and the Government must carefully consider it.

46. The Government must also be assured that the UK Border Agency overseas system would be able to cope with the increase in demand should students return home in order to apply for a new visa75—there have been 300,000 in-country Tier 4 visa applications since March 2009.76 We note there is a financial implication for the UK Border Agency should such a policy be implemented. Following the recent changes to the charges for UK visas, the UK Border Agency loses £34 on each Tier 4 visa processed out of country whereas it makes an average profit of £9277 on each Tier 4 visa processed in the UK.78

47. We believe the Government should consider alternatives that still break the link between ending one visa and starting another while making some concessions to the financial and practical circumstances of international students. One such option may be simply requiring students to apply in country and leave the UK to finalise the visa application overseas in any location suitable to the student’s budget and other circumstances. We have obtained information on the American system in which paperwork is completed in-country but the visa holder is required to travel outside the country in order to have the visa validated. We believe that such a requirement may satisfy the needs of the UK Border Agency without requiring a complete upheaval of the applicant’s life.

48. We agree that students should not be allowed to accumulate visa after visa, merely to prolong their stay in the UK and we therefore understand the rationale of requiring a student to return to their home country in order to apply for a visa for a new course. However, given the practicalities involved and the financial implications for both the student and the UK Border Agency we consider the Government’s proposal too onerous and likely to lead to a decline in the retention rate for the high quality students the UK’s research facilities most desire. We note that applicants for other visas do not necessarily have to return to their home country in order to apply for a new or extended visa. We are not convinced of the need to change the status quo. However, if the Home

74 Ev w23—The University of Warwick (SV18) 75 Ev 13—UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA) (SV29) 76 Information provided by UKBA 77 There are two Tier 4 visas applicable: Main and Dependent. A postal main visa is charged £70 above cost and a postal dependent visa at £123 below cost. A public enquiry office main visa is £386 above cost and a public enquiry office dependent visa is £35 above cost. To obtain the figure of £92, all four figures have been added together and divided by 4. 78 HC Deb: Col.9WS 28 Feb 2011

Office is determined to make a change, we suggest that it investigate the possibility of requiring that any new or extended visa be validated at a UK port of entry, although we regard this as an undesirable and bureaucratic approach.

The closure of the Post Study Work Route 49. The proposal to close the Post Study Work Route was highly unpopular amongst our witnesses. As it currently stands, any graduate who has received (a) a UK recognised bachelor or postgraduate degree, or (b) a UK postgraduate certificate in education or Professional Graduate Diploma of Education, or (c) a Higher National Diploma from a Scottish institution can apply for a Tier 1 Post Study Work Visa.79 The qualification must have been obtained from a UK recognised or listed body80 which is licensed as a Tier 4 sponsor. Therefore, a qualification from 757 UK institutions currently entitles the student to two years’ post study work. The applicant must also demonstrate that he or she has the requisite English language competence and maintenance funds.81 Currently the Post Study Work Visa lasts for two years. It cannot be renewed or extended but the holder can move into one of the other tiers of the immigration system, for instance if recruited by a company willing to sponsor them under Tier 2.

50. In 2009, over 38,000 Post Study Work visas were granted.82 The Minister for Immigration said that “more than 50% of [those holding such visas] are going to unskilled jobs.”83 The UK is currently experiencing severe economic problems and the latest unemployment rate amongst UK graduates is 20%, the highest in over a decade.84 When we suggested to Aaron Porter, President of the NUS, that having foreign graduates doing unskilled work was not the purpose of the Post Study Work route he replied: “current economic conditions are meaning that is probably a little more prevalent now than it would have been a few years ago. I hope and I am sure that in years to come the volume of that problem should subside.”85

51. The Post Study Work visa was introduced following a recommendation in a 2006 report from the then Trade & Industry Committee, Trade and Investment opportunities with India.86 The Committee recommended that

two years is the minimum time that should be given to all overseas students of a particular calibre under any transitional scheme between studying in the UK and pursuing a full time career here, or returning to their home country. This certainty is crucial if we are to attract the brightest and the best students in the face of the financial incentives available elsewhere, especially in the US, that we cannot match at

79 www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/policyandlaw/immigrationlaw/immigrationrules/ 80 Recognised bodies have their own degree-awarding powers, whereas degrees from listed bodies are awarded by one of the 157 recognised bodies. As a general rule, recognised bodies are UK universities and listed bodies are HE institutions or colleges. 81 www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/policyandlaw/immigrationlaw/immigrationrules/ 82 P16 The Student Immigration System: A Consultation UKBA 83 Q299 84 www.statistics.gov.uk/cci/nugget.asp?id=1162 (26 January 2011) 85 Q230 86 Third Report, Trade & Industry Committee, Session 2005–06

present. We recommend that the UK Government commission a study of the costs and benefits for the UK economy, and overseas students, of extending this period further in the future.87

52. In 2009 the Independent Migration Advisory Committee examined the Post Study Work route. They recommended that the Post Study Work route remain open on the basis that closing it would significantly reduce the number of international students coming to study in the UK and there was no evidence that those on Post Study Work visas were displacing UK graduates in the job market.88 They also recommended that the visa remain at its current duration of two years.89

53. We received only one piece of evidence which was in favour of the closure of the Post Study Work scheme, although the respondent conceded that its abolition could result in a decrease of international students.90 Simeon Underwood cited a study carried out by the London School of Economics in which 56% of international students said that the entitlement to Post Study Work was a factor in applying to study in the UK.91 For many international students, the Post Study Work scheme is seen not as an entry into the UK labour market but a way to recoup costs incurred by studying in the UK. This is especially important for students who are planning to return to countries which have less than favourable exchange rates. Newcastle University Student Union cited the cases of China and India as being particularly relevant.92

54. In a number of subject areas graduates use the Post Study Work route to undertake a period of work which is required in order to gain qualification or registration. These degrees include Architecture93, Law and Engineering94. Oxford University gave the example of students who have completed their doctorates using the Post Study Work route to stay on in post-doctoral positions, often to continue highly specialised research for which most job-seekers in the UK would not be qualified to apply, adding: “If we cannot employ the graduate students we have so highly trained, we will deprive ourselves of a real asset to the research effort which sustains our leading international competitiveness.”95

55. The British Medical Association informed us that doctors who have finished their Foundation Programme make use of the Post Study Work Route in order to undertake speciality training. It suggests that the closure of the Post Study Work route:

will result in the NHS losing out on the benefits from its significant financial investment in doctors’ training and that the NHS service delivery will be compromised due to a shortfall of speciality trainees. ... It costs the NHS in the region

87 Para 146, T&I Rep HC 881 2005-06 88 Para 7.32 MAC Dec 09 89 Para 7.43 MAC Dec 09 90 Ev 1—Migrationwatch (SV3) 91 Q103 92 Ev w91—Newcastle University Students Union (SV48) 93 Ev w12—University of Sheffield Students' Union (SV9) 94 Ev w94—Russell International Excellence Group (SV51) 95 Ev w86—University of Oxford (SV21)

of £250,000 to train a newly qualified doctor and in addition to this the NHS makes a significant contribution in terms of the salary paid to those who undertake the Foundation Programme (the Foundation Programme is a two-year postgraduate training programme, the first year of which is compulsory in order to gain full registration with the General Medical Council).96

56. The Association of MBAs has also protested about the closure of the Post Study Work route which allows graduates to gain valuable work experience on the completion of their MBAs. In an open letter in the House Magazine, signed by representatives of 40 of the 47 UK business schools, they stated that:

If implemented, these plans would have a serious impact both on the competitiveness, finances and reputation of UK business schools but also on the wider economy. UK business schools will suffer a serious loss of fee income as overseas MBA students switch to other countries, UK businesses will find their recruitment pool of highly skilled and experienced individuals diminished and, over the longer term, they will lose the ambassadorial benefits that British educated MBAs bring to international business relationships.97

We will further examine the importance of UK business schools later in this report.

57. A number of other countries have something similar to the Post Study Work route and the opportunity to work is seen as being a major recruitment tool. Below is a table compiled by the House of Commons Library which gives the details of similar options available in the main competitor countries.

Country Visa comparable to Tier 1 (PSW)? Main conditions and eligibility criteria

United Tier 1 (Post-study Work) Must apply within 12 months of completing Kingdom For students who have been their studies. awarded a UK recognised bachelor’s Entitles holder to live and work in the UK for or postgraduate degree, or a PGCE up to two years in order to seek skilled work or a PGDE or a HND If they find skilled or highly skilled work during the two year period they can then ‘switch’ into Tier 1 or Tier 2 of the points- based system

New Yes: For students who have Zealand completed a course of minimum of 3 years’ completion time

Graduate Job Search work visa WD2 Must apply within 3 months of end of (for students with no job offer) student visa Entitles holder to work for up to 12 months Minimum maintenance funds requirement: NZ$2,100

Practical Experience After Lasts 2 years (or 3 years if working towards Completion of Studies work visa membership of a NZ professional association

96 Ev w102— British Medical Association (BMA) (SV53) 97 The House Magazine, Vol.36 7 Feb

WD1 (for persons with an offer of which requires over 2 years’ relevant practical employment relevant to their work experience) studies)

Canada Yes: Post-Graduation Work Permit Must apply within 90 days of receiving official Program confirmation of having completed the academic programme, whilst still in For students who graduated from a possession of a valid study permit participating Canadian post- secondary institution having studied Work permit cannot be valid for longer than full-time and for longer than 8 the length of studies (and may be for months shorter), up to a maximum of 3 years

Various scholarship/exchange scheme students are ineligible

Australia Yes: Skilled – Graduate (Temporary) Must apply within 6 months of completing visa subclass 485 studies

For students who have completed an Subject to age restrictions eligible qualification due to at least two years of study Must have the skills and qualifications required to meet the terms of the skilled occupation list and nominate an eligible occupation on the Skilled Occupation List Entitles holder to remain for 18 months to travel, work, or study to improve English

Germany Yes: Extension/change of residence Student residence permit can be extended for permit98 up to 1 year in order to look for a job appropriate to the degree For students who have successfully completed a full-time university If successful, can then apply for a residence course permit for work purpose (subject to approval and some restrictions on the type of job they may take up) Persons in receipt of a scholarship or grant may be refused an extension of residence permit

Graduates must have proof of sufficient maintenance funds for whilst seeking work Whilst looking for a job, graduates are subject to the same employment restrictions as were imposed during their studies (maximum 90 full days, etc)

France Yes: Extension/change of residence permit99

Students who have earned a degree Can apply for a temporary, non-renewable equivalent to a Master’s or above residency permit valid for 6 months

Entitles holder to work in any job ‘at up to 60% of full employment’; persons who receive a contract related to their studies and with a salary of at least 150% of the minimum wage are then allowed to work full-time and must apply for a change of

98 According to information from German Academic Exchange Service 99 According to information from Campusfrance

residence status (from student to employee)

Other students Can accept an offer of employment after graduation. Must request a change of residence status request, which will be assessed according to factors including the employer’s motives, the applicant’s background and the length of studies in France

USA Yes: Extension of student visa for training/switching to work category

Practical training (during or post- Student may be entitled to 12 months completion of studies) may be practical training (with further entitlement if authorized to an F-1 student who they change to a higher education level) has been lawfully enrolled on a full English language students are ineligible time basis, in an approved education provider for one full academic year M-1 visa holders may only engage in practical training after completion of studies

Curricular Practical Training For F-1 visa holders, for training which is an integral part of an established curriculum. Students who have received one year or more of full time curricular practical training are ineligible for post-completion academic training (with some exemptions)

Optional Practical Training (For Must be directly related to the programme of persons who have completed at least study 1 full academic year of study in the US) Practical training must be completed within 14 months of completion of studies

F-1 STEM graduates in employment may request a further 17 month extension

‘Cap-gap’ extension of F-1 visa F-1 visa holders applying for an H-1B visa may have their F-1 visa automatically extended whilst the application is pending; some exemptions to the ‘cap’ on H-1B visas also apply for persons with a US Master’s degree or above

This table was produced by the House of Commons Library. This table seeks to identify immigration routes most directly comparable with the UK’s Tier 1 (Post-study) Work visa. It does not consider in detail the further options which may be available to former students (i.e. after availing themselves of these options). Other visa options for foreign former students wishing to extend their stay in order to take up employment may also exist (particularly if they already have a job offer/sponsor). Our witnesses suggested a number of different options to reform the Post-Study Work system. Universities UK said that the type of institutions and qualifications whose students can apply for Post Study Work visa ought to be examined.100 Imperial College London also suggested that only graduates of Highly Trusted Sponsor institutions be allowed to apply for a Post Study Work visa, that the route be open to those who have completed a Masters degree or a Doctorate or that the route revert to its forerunner, the Science and

100 Ev 8—Universities UK (SV28)

Engineering Graduate scheme.101 The Association of Independent Higher Education Providers also supported the limiting of the option to those pursuing a postgraduate qualification.102 NHS Employers suggested that a six month visa be introduced to allow graduates to look for work.103 During informal meetings with members and executives from the Association of MBAs, they also supported this proposal. The 1994 Group supported the idea of restricting the route to graduates of institutions who have Highly Trusted Sponsor status and also suggested that there ought to be controls placed on the time allowed to search for a job or restricting the route to employment which relates to the qualification just gained.104 We also received anecdotal evidence that a number of graduates set up their own companies. There were suggestions that any changes in the route ought to be implemented for those commencing courses in the next academic year so that those currently studying continue to enjoy conditions applicable when they were recruited.105

58. We understand the reasoning behind the proposal to close the Post Study Work route but its importance in terms of attracting international students and its use as a method of gaining work experience for certain degrees should not be underestimated. We would ideally suggest that the system be maintained, in the light of the use of post- study work options to attract the best students by our main competitors in the higher education sector. However, if it is to be reformed, we recommend that the Government give careful consideration to either a) introducing a six month visa to look for work with the possibility of an extension of 18 months if the applicant has received the offer of skilled work or is a director of a company which has two full-time equivalent employees; b) limiting the number of institutions whose qualifications entitle the holder to post study work; and c) given concerns about maintaining UK competitiveness in STEM research, exempt STEM graduates from new restrictions until the domestic market is sufficiently robust.

59. We recommend that any changes to the Post-Study Work route be implemented for students arriving in the new academic year, and do not affect those students who already have visas; they had a legitimate expectation that the post-study work route would be available to them after their studies. We also recommend that the route is examined for its impact on UK employment rates by the Migration Advisory Committee on an annual basis. We further recommend an examination which includes scrutinising the number of institutions whose students are eligible to apply for a Post- Study Work visa.

Term time work 60. Rules governing the temporary employment of international students (no international student can be employed on a permanent contract) are complex. At present, those on foundation degree, Scottish Higher National Diploma, degree-level courses and above are

101 Ev 3—Head of International Student Support, Imperial College London (SV14) 102 Ev w41—Association of Independent Higher Education Providers (SV26) 103 Ev w46—NHS Employers (SV32) 104 Ev w84—1994 Group (SV46) 105 Q115

allowed to work 20 hours per week during term time. Others studying below degree level can work up to 10 hours per week during term time. All international students are allowed to work full-time during vacation periods. The consultation proposals would limit international students, on courses of all levels, to working on campus Monday-Friday during term-time with no restrictions on employment at weekends and during vacations.

61. The consultation document makes clear the reason for the proposal:

the 2009 Labour Force Survey suggests that amongst non-EEA students, there is significant working in breach by those following courses at degree level and above, as well as by those studying below degree level. For those studying full-time at degree level and above, 30% reported working more than 21 hours per week, and for those studying below degree level, 53% reported working more than 21 hours per week.106

62. As the Labour Force Survey is a snapshot and does not in itself prove endemic abuse of the system, we believe that reform of the system should be based on clear evidence in order to ensure that changes will be effective and not give rise to unintended consequences. We recommend that work is undertaken urgently to quantify and clarify the scale of any abuse and the extent to which overseas students simply work to support themselves during their course of study, as happens with UK students in the USA and other countries, for example.

63. There are a number of practical difficulties with the consultation proposals, such as the definition of both ‘campus’ and ‘term-time’. Term-times are not uniform. For instance, Oxford University terms are generally eight weeks and therefore shorter than most other universities, some of which have terms lasting up to 12 weeks. In addition, graduates studying research (ie non-taught) degrees do not adhere to term times in their work patterns. The concept of ‘campus’ is also problematic—when we questioned officials from the UK Border Agency, they defined it as buildings controlled by the university with the intention that the only jobs offered to international students should be those “that helped the university do its business. It was not about research and not about working in a WHSmith on the campus.”107

64. We are particularly concerned that the introduction of these rules could adversely affect doctoral students. Both Oxford and Cambridge University Student Unions gave us examples of the specialised work undertaken by doctoral students:

for higher education institutions (teaching seminars, tutorials and lectures) other than their own, and under any proposals, we would be very concerned that this valuable opportunity for inter-institutional collaboration could be made illegal.108

One student explained how he had supported his doctoral studies by working remotely, via the internet, for a consultancy firm in London, putting the knowledge and skills which he had as a doctoral student to productive use in the British

106 P17 The Student Immigration System: A Consultation, UKBA 107 Q313 108 Ev w28—Cambridge University Students' Union (SV20)

economy. Another explained how he researched and wrote articles on climate change economics for a firm in London while pursuing his Master’s at Oxford.109

In its submission, Oxford University pointed out that this proposal could exclude students from valuable opportunities to work part-time in its large number of independent spin-off or partner companies and institutions conducting ground breaking research in scientific areas.110 This was reinforced in a submission from the BioIndustry Association which gave the example of Syntaxin, an Oxford SME which employed doctoral students. The BioIndustry Association stated that a weekend-only working policy would be completely impractical, explaining:

Student placements within industry are an important part of the skills development process, with short and long term benefits both for the students themselves and for industry, and others who rely on the provision of highly qualified and skilled researchers. The example of [Syntaxin] demonstrates the need for these placements to remain practical and flexible to industry needs with, if possible, light touch policy and regulation.

65. We agree that the system by which students are allowed to undertake paid employment off-campus ought to be more closely regulated in order to prevent abuse. Nevertheless, while intended to be clear and prescriptive, in fact the proposal to limit the ability of international students to work off-campus is likely to lead to anomalies and unintended consequences. We recommend that the UK Border Agency publish clearer definitions of both campus and term-time, and write to us before any change is implemented. Within these definitions, it would be better to replace the phrase ‘term- time’ with a maximum number of weeks per year, based on a realistic assessment of the needs of genuine students and generous enough to cater for different university requirements. We also recommend that students should not be restricted in undertaking work which relates to their degree.

Work placements 66. In relation to courses including work placements, we received very few submissions regarding the proposal to increase the minimum ratio of study to work from 50:50 to 66:33.111 The BMA highlighted its significance in one area, however:

Clinical placements are vital for providing medical students with the requisite skills to graduate and enter the Foundation programme. It is through these placements that students have the opportunity to interact with patients from a range of social, cultural and ethnic backgrounds with a range of illnesses or conditions. ... The BMA is therefore extremely concerned about the proposal to raise the minimum ratio of study to work from 50:50 to 66:33 and the potential detrimental impact upon the quality of medical training in the UK. Whilst we recognise that the thinking behind it is to deter migrants seeking an easy route into employment, we would point out that

109 Ev w111—Oxford University Student Union (SV56) 110 Ev w86—University of Oxford (SV21) 111 P18 The Student Immigration System: A Consultation, UKBA

clinical placements are unpaid and are an educational component of the medical degree.112

67. We urge the UK Border Agency to ensure that if introduced, the proposal to increase the study to work ratio will not affect the clinical placements necessary for healthcare professionals and those in related disciplines. We also suggest it undertakes a separate study to ensure that such a ratio will not adversely affect any other key professions.

Dependants 68. The consultation document proposes that no student studying for less than 12 months ought to be accompanied by dependants and that dependants of students ought not to be able to work unless they qualify independently under Tier 1 or Tier 2.113

69. We received evidence from respondents who felt that these measures were unnecessary.114 In terms of the length of time, this may adversely affect Masters students whose courses are under 12 months. Respondents have also stated that such a prohibition may adversely affect women, especially those from cultures where it is considered unacceptable to live away from their spouse for an extended period. Instead of prohibiting dependants based just on the length of course, we recommend that the level of the course be also taken into account. We recommend that those doing courses of under 12 months at Masters level or above be allowed to be accompanied by dependants, and agree with the Government that those doing courses over 12 months should be allowed to be accompanied by dependants.

70. In terms of the right to work, we agree that dependants ought not to have unfettered access to the labour market. However, the University College London Union stated that

The Immigration Rules refer to employment rather than just work; further, the Immigration Rules include restrictions on both paid and unpaid employment including voluntary work or employment... Currently employment is prohibited for family members if the student’s course is below degree level or if the student’s course is for less than twelve months. We see no reason to change these restrictions.115

71. In light of the volume of evidence received we ask the Government to clarify what a dependant would and would not be able to do under the new rules. For instance, could they volunteer at a museum or in a school? We also recommend that, if the Government allows the dependants of international students to work only if they qualify in their own right under Tier 1 or 2, it should undertake a review of the impact within a year of the proposed changes being implemented, although it would be better

112 Ev w102—British Medical Association (BMA) (SV53) 113 P18 The Student Immigration System: A Consultation, UKBA 114 Q97, Q236, Ev w5—University of Huddersfield (SV5), Ev w10—London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (SV8), Ev w23—The University of Warwick (SV18), Ev 13—UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA) (SV29), Ev w48—Immigration Law Practitioners' Association (ILPA) (SV33), Ev w71—University College London Union (SV41), Ev 19—National Union of Students (SV50), Ev w94—Russell International Excellence Group (SV51), Ev w104— Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants (JCWI) (SV54), Ev w111—Oxford University Student Union (SV56) 115 Ev w71—University College London Union (SV41)

to delay implementation until the situation has been researched more carefully and more robust proposals subjected to proper scrutiny.

Low Risk/High Risk 72. The consultation document proposes implementing differential requirements for high and low risk students using either the nationality of the student or the status of the sponsoring institution.116 If nationality is taken into account, it will use the incidences of forged and counterfeit documents in order to ascertain what can be considered high risk countries. The consultation document carried a table of top 10 posts at which Tier 4 applications were refused on the basis of the use of forged documents between January and the end of October 2010.

1. New Delhi (India) 2. Islamabad (Pakistan) 3. Dhaka (Bangladesh) 4. Mumbai (India) 5. Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates) 6. Chennai (India) 7. Abuja (Nigeria) 8. Colombo (Sri Lanka) 9. Beijing (China) 10. Guangzhou (China)117

The table is followed by a clarification:

This information is indicative only, as it lists refusals made on the basis of forged documents of all types, not just financial documentation used to earn points for maintenance. That said, more than half of all forged or fraudulently obtained documents detected and reported by overseas posts are forged or counterfeit bank documents. The visa post is estimated to be in the country of the applicant’s nationality in at least 90% of cases, however, a small percentage of these applicants will be nationals of countries other than the one they applied in. Abu Dhabi is an exception to this rule as in 2010 (up to September), 78% of all Tier 4 applications at that post were made by Pakistani nationals, followed by Iranian nationals.118

73. The UK Council for International Student Affairs stated:

The proposal for a simplification of application processes in low risk countries appears entirely sensible. There would however be objections and concerns—in terms of foreign policy and a risk of racial stereotyping—if it appeared that all individuals from particular countries were being seen as high risk. It would, we

116 P20 The Student Immigration System: A Consultation, UKBA 117 P21 The Student Immigration System: A Consultation UKBA 118 P21 The Student Immigration System: A Consultation UKBA

believe, be preferable to support the second option of introducing a fast track and simplified process for students with offers from Highly Trusted Sponsors.119

74. When we suggested that the introduction of such assessments may cause diplomatic rifts between the UK and its foreign partners, the Minister of State for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Jeremy Browne MP assured us that this was not a problem

In every case that I can recall, they have recognised that we have to have an immigration system, which is robustly enforced and is not abused, and they don’t want their own citizens to be abusing it, and if we are taking measures to prevent their own citizens from abusing it, they fully understand that position.120

75. The Government states that “such an approach is likely to require an exemption from the Race Relations Act”.121 We note the assurances of the Minister that the introduction of differential requirements based on nationality will not harm diplomatic relations. However, given the fact that the Race Relations Act would need to be amended, we encourage the Government to take legal advice to ensure that such a decision will not be subject to legal or parliamentary challenge. The Government should work with relevant government authorities abroad to discourage fraud and with Highly Trusted Sponsors to make the system both simpler and more robust.

Accreditation of language schools 76. The consultation document proposes to introduce stricter accreditation procedures for private education providers. Accreditation was an area in which all sectors of the industry agreed reform was needed. At present there are five accreditation bodies, which has led to weak accreditation, as Tony Millns of English UK explained

there are signs that there is still some abuse in the system and that accreditation procedures should certainly be tightened up ... there are signs that a centre can get accreditation withdrawn by one accrediting body and simply trot across the street, metaphorically, and get accreditation from another body. That indicates that standards are not consistent.122

A number of those who submitted evidence felt that one accreditation body ought to be responsible for governing both public and private education,123 ensuring that consistently high standards were required across the industry. At present, publicly-funded colleges are regulated by Ofsted, who were at one point convening a consistency and standards board which oversaw the accreditation bodies. Dominic Scott, Chief Executive of the UK Council for Student Affairs, claimed that the board has not met for more than a year.124

119 Ev 13—International Student Affairs (UKCISA) (SV29) 120 Q393 121 P21 The Student Immigration System: A Consultation, UKBA 122 Q7 123 Ev 5—The Association of Colleges (SV16a), Ev 6—English UK (SV17), Ev w30—London School of Business and Finance (SV22), Ev w42—INTO University Partnerships (SV27), Ev w57—Navitas (UK) (SV36), Ev w98—Cambridge Education Group (SV52) 124 Q217

77. We fully support the Government’s intention to introduce stricter accreditation procedures and welcome the desire to work with the departments responsible for education to introduce a comprehensive accreditation system. We believe it is important that accreditation ought to be equally reliant on the levels of compliance and the quality of education provided. We also recommend that this accreditation be provided by one body to avoid the current confusion.

78. However, the inconsistency in standards did not seem to be the only flaw in the current system. During the course of our first evidence session we were informed that the approval for the five accreditation bodies had lapsed in 2009 and had not yet been renewed.

Tony Millns: The accrediting bodies were approved for an initial term, I believe, of two years. That approval has lapsed and, technically, none of the accrediting bodies, I believe, is currently actually approved by the Border Agency.

Chair: When did that happen?

Elizabeth McLaren: Part way through 2009.

Chair: Are you telling this Committee that those who are now doing accreditation are doing so without proper authority?

Tony Millns: Yes.

Chair: Does the Government know this?

Tony Millns: Yes.

Chair: What have they done about this?

Tony Millns: Nothing, in fact.125

79. It would—to put it mildly—be inconsistent to introduce stricter accreditation procedures without re-approving at least one accreditation body, be it an existing body or a newly-created one. We are seeking urgent clarification on this issue and expect the Government to close any gap in regulation immediately and to improve the efficiency of its accreditation systems. We also expect that, in future, approval will not be allowed to lapse.

125 Q19 - 22

Further recommendations

Discretion of Entry Clearance Managers 80. Witnesses have talked about the rigid way in which the Points-Based System operates. The unintended consequence of this is that a student who does not have a bank account but has a sponsor who can support them financially does not receive enough points. It also means that, unlike in the USA for instance, once somebody has a visa, they cannot be refused entry at the border.

Mr Mehmet: The points-based system introduced the system whereby you acquired a certain number of points if you had a letter of acceptance.

Chair: Indeed. I think we understand that, as we wrote the report on this. We know the points. Tell us what is wrong with it.

Mr Mehmet: It was simply to emphasise the point that as a former immigration officer and entry clearance officer, that loss of discretion is crucial in determining the future intentions of an individual who is applying.

Chair: So bringing that back into the system would be very positive to tackling the issues of bogus colleges?

Mr Mehmet: If not in its entirety, certainly to a certain extent it would be a huge benefit.

Chair: There is nothing wrong with a student in Delhi or Mumbai being able to have a face-to-face interview with an ECO rather than arriving at Heathrow Airport, where they are asked questions—they are granted admission, aren’t they, because once they have their visa, they have their visa.

Sir Andrew Green: Exactly, yes.

Chair: So this would help the system of shaking out who are bogus people.

Sir Andrew Green: Enormously.

Mr Mehmet: Very well put, if I may say so, Chairman.

We believe that it is essential that enough flexibility is introduced to allow Entry Clearance Managers discretion in exceptional cases where appropriate. This will also allow an Entry Clearance Manager to recommend refusal where a student is clearly bogus. Such changes would allow genuine students to come in and prevent the bogus students from entering, something the Points Based System does not allow for.

Accreditation of agents 81. During the course of our inquiry, it became evident that one of the weaknesses of the current system is in control of educational agents employed in source countries in order to attract international students into English institutions. We received anecdotal evidence that some were not interested in the intentions of students whereas others actively encouraged

‘bogus students’. During a meeting with English Language schools, almost all of those present, representatives of some 50 schools, indicated that they had dismissed at least one educational agent. We are aware that English UK currently runs the ‘Partner Agency Scheme’ which it describes as

a form of accreditation based upon a) track record of being a reliable, efficient and honest agent (attested by references from a minimum of 5 member centres, plus our own database records) and b) a certain amount of ‘knowledge’ through the training scheme run by the British Council, with material we have provided covering English language courses. Agents have to sign up to a code of practice covering ethical business practices ... There is more demand than we can at present accommodate for this, and it is clearly fulfilling a need.126

Tony Millns of English UK further commented that it was:

in some ways easier for an association like ourselves to set up a scheme of this kind because it is our members who work with agents on a day to day basis, and know which ones are excellent and which merely adequate.127

82. When we suggested that the British Council run an accreditation scheme for educational agents, Andrew Whyte, Director of Communication at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office replied that

it would be very costly to do it, they are not geared up to do it at the moment, they don’t believe they have the capacity in their staffing at the moment; that is not what their role is, and it would be expensive to add that, and they see no way of recovering those costs.128

He added that there were some legal issues with judging accreditation criteria in different countries as there was no international consensus on accreditation principles. He also pointed out that whilst the British Council ran online training detailing the due diligence required on the part of sponsoring institutions, there was no appetite from the UK higher education sector for them to play a role in the accreditation of agents.129

83. Whilst we accept that the majority of educational agents are legitimate business people, the importance of the role within student immigration means that UK Border Agency ought to investigate options for tightening up the system. These options do not necessarily have to include further regulation but instead publicising available schemes such as the Partner Agency Scheme to Tier 4 sponsors.

Further recommendations received in evidence 84. We also received a number of recommendations that were not linked to government proposals. Professor Edward Acton, the head of the Universities UK working group on the

126 Ev 8—English UK (SV17a) 127 Ibid 128 Q383 129 Q383

UK Border Agency’s proposed restrictions on Tier 4 visas, suggested that “it would be very wise for Britain to insist on significant deposits for all students entering the country.”130 When asked to clarify this point, Universities UK explained that:

Anecdotally some institutions report that the payment of deposits can help to filter out students who are not completely committed to taking up a place at the course to which they have applied, as well as providing some protection to the institution itself by reducing the risk of the student not turning up to the course. In addition some students welcome the payment of a deposit as additional security that they have a confirmed place on a popular course. The payment of a deposit can be an indicator that a student is serious about coming to the UK to study.131

We are not convinced that a substantial deposit ought to be requested of every international student but recommend that the UK Border Agency commission some research, looking at the positives and negatives of having such a requirement. We are concerned that the implementation of such a system would result in only the wealthy being able to study in the UK, although we note that the cost of studying here would already be prohibitive to poorer students.

85. Kaplan International Colleges also suggested a number of initiatives that could be introduced. One was that students ought to pay fees in advance—100% of the fees for courses under six months duration and 66% of fees for the first year of any course over six months duration. In relation to this, they suggested a tuition assurance scheme which would safeguard fees in case of the closure of an institution (either forced or voluntary). They also proposed that the UK Border Agency impose a reasonable and mutually agreed levy on institutions, assessed per-head of each non-EU student, in order to provide the UK Border Agency with additional resources to ensure compliance measures were enforced.132

86. There were also recommendations which focused on the way that migration data is collected and the classification of students as migrants.133 We will examine this later in our report.

Impact Assessments 87. A number of our respondents highlighted the need for an impact assessment for the Government’s proposals, both on the industry and the economy as a whole. Professor Edward Acton pointed out that whereas the Migration Advisory Committee was asked to undertake meticulous weighing of the economic and social pros and cons of economic migration, there has been no equivalent assessment of temporary student migration.134 Million + also highlighted that in September 2010, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills had

130 Q63 131 Ev18—Universities UK (SV28a) 132 Ev w57—Navitas (UK) (SV36) 133 Ev w89—University of East Anglia (UEA) (SV47) 134 Ev w79—Chair of the Universities UK Working Group (SV45)

commissioned London Economics to establish a comprehensive estimate of the current total value of overseas trade and investment due to the UK Higher and Further Education sectors (including teaching, research, English language training and other training for adults, as well as businesses providing services to these sectors) and an estimate of the total value of the foreign direct investment that those sectors attract.135

The Department confirmed that this paper was due to be published in the spring, by which time any proposed changes will have been announced. The UK Council for International Student Affairs emphasised that a full Impact Assessment should be undertaken on not just migration numbers but on UK jobs, income and reputation and made publically available for proper scrutiny and debate prior to any rule changes.136 The Minister for Universities and Science told us:

The impact assessment that is being prepared as part of the Government’s review of this policy will cover these economic impacts—it is intended to do so—and of course we will then release our overall impact assessment as part of the process when the decision is taken. So yes, the regulatory impact assessment is intended to capture those sorts of effects and it is being prepared as a shared analysis, agreed starting point for the discussions, that should be agreed between BIS and the Home Office.137

88. We believe that any changes in student immigration policy ought to be accompanied by a publicly-available impact assessment. As we noted in our Report on the Immigration Cap138: “There has been a consistent tendency, under both current and previous Governments, to rush through complex changes to the immigration system... Such unnecessary haste leads to poor decision-making”. We welcome the Minister’s commitment to the publication of an impact assessment when the policy is announced. We also recommend that the student immigration system be reviewed on a regular but infrequent basis—for instance, once a Parliament—in order to ensure that the system is suitable for requirements.

135 Ev w114—million+ (SV57) 136 Ev 13—UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA) (SV29) 137 Q347 138 First Report of Session 2010–11, HC 361, paragraph 110

4 Ensuring the future viability of the Student Immigration system

The International Passenger Survey 89. The numbers of visas issued to international students has risen steadily over the past five years, peaking in 2009. The UN definition of a migrant is “a person who moves to a country other than that of his or her usual residence for a period of at least a year, so that the country of destination effectively becomes his or her new country of usual residence.” This means that international students will have been responsible for a part of the recent growth of the net migration figure. However, it is arguable that bona fide students who intend to stay in the UK for a few years to pursue a course of study and then return home are not a class of people who have a deleterious impact on the resident population. As one of our witnesses argued

I think they are a totally irrelevant target. I think the Financial Times put it more crisply in an article yesterday when they said, “They eat, they drink, they spend money, they do not drive down wages or weigh heavily on public services”. I think if we are looking at where real public concern is, it is about impact on public services.139

Although we understand that students have to be classified as migrants for the purpose of the collection of internationally-comparable data, it doesn’t follow that they have to be treated like other migrants who intend to settle in the UK.

90. Moreover, we have received evidence which suggests the data on which the net migration figures are based, the International Passenger Survey, is flawed and therefore over-inflates the figure of students who remain in country. The University of East Anglia summarised what it saw to be the issue:

The Consultation claims that, in 2009, the student route accounted for approximately 139,000 of a total net (non-EU) migration of 184,000. This is largely based on the International Passenger Survey (IPS) which surveys 0.2% of travellers, and is therefore subject to significant sampling errors as a consequence. Importantly, the Migration Advisory Committee Report “Limits on Migration” observes that the outflow of students completing their course and returning home as measured by the IPS is materially less than their own estimates. The statistical evidence is highly questionable and is likely to significantly over-state net migration and the contribution of the student route.140

91. The Migration Advisory Committee, in its 2010 report, ‘Limits on Migration’ noted that:

In 2009, the largest inflows of long term migrants were the 163,000 students who came to the UK from outside the EU. 55,000 long-term migrants came to the UK

139 Q200 140 Ev w89—University of East Anglia (UEA) (SV47)

from outside the EU for work-related reasons, either with a definite job or looking for work, compared to 79,000 non-EU nationals who left the UK for work-related reasons. However, it is important to recognise that this does not mean that net migration of non-EU work-related migrants to the UK was negative. This is because the reason a migrant leaves the UK is likely to differ from the reason why he or she first came to the UK. For example, students will come to the UK for the reason of formal study, but once they graduate may leave the UK for work-related reasons, and be counted in the work related outflow.141

92. Professor Smith of Universities UK said: “ Our problem with all the data is that there is not the linkage shown between the methodology they are using through the International Passenger Survey to estimate students leaving. That is our major concern.”142 Professor Acton, referring to the 2001 census, added: “The IPS had undercounted young people leaving the country. They still are, massively.”143 In their written evidence, Universities UK highlighted the lack of data about student visas:

We do not know how many visas and visa extensions were issued to students studying at UK universities, we do not know how many Post Study Work visas were issued to graduates from UK universities and we do not know how many dependants accompanied students at UK universities. Without this data it is very difficult to have a properly informed discussion about the Government’s proposals.

93. Any policy which is based on flawed data has the potential to create significant unintended consequences. We are broadly supportive of the Government’s policy of reducing immigration, but we believe that policy decisions ought to be based on the best possible information. We therefore urge the Government, as a matter of priority, to investigate whether a more reliable system of data collection than the International Passenger Survey can be used upon which to base immigration policy.

Exit Checks 94. At least two of our witnesses claimed that, in certain areas, the Australian system of immigration is superior to that in the UK. Dominic Scott of the UK Centre for International Student Affairs described it thus:

I think Australia has the most sophisticated intelligence on student movement of any country in the world. They will be able to tell you how many students came last month into the country. For the UK, we are quite often six months or a year behind.144

This was further emphasised by Sir Andrew Green of MigrationWatch who stated that “the big difference with Australia is they do have a system that counts individuals in and individuals out.” In the Coalition Agreement, the Government pledged to reintroduce exit

141 P67, Limits on Migration, Migration Advisory Committee, November 2010 142 Q76 143 Q78 144 Q209

checks.145 We suggest the Government make the introduction of exit checks a priority. We recommend that the Government deliver a timetable for the reintroduction of exit checks as soon as possible.

95. Several respondents questioned the introduction of, and ability of the UK Border Agency to cope with, another major set of changes within the student immigration system. INTO University Partnerships146 called attention to the fact that

The [Highly Trusted Sponsor] Scheme has been operational for less than a year— and has already been reviewed and revised on three occasions. It has already resulted in the removal of 2000 colleges from the Register of Sponsors. The Sponsor Management System introduced in March 2010 enables much greater levels of control and the HTS (especially at University levels) operates at less than 2% non compliance rates – according to the UK Border Agency’s own research. We believe it should have a full operational cycle before we review and implement yet more changes to an over-stretched and under-resourced UK Border Agency.147

The Immigration Law Practitioners’ Association identified several areas where the proposals would significantly increase the UK Border Agency’s workload:

It is proposed that the students return home between courses (question 8 in the UK Border Agency consultation paper). This has the potential to generate large numbers of applications to posts, requiring a quick turnaround, and peaking at particular times of year. Secure English language tests showing a level of B2 across all four components (questions 5 and 6 of the UK Border Agency consultation paper) would also appear to require of the UK Border Agency that it is able to produce and administer a scheme for mapping International English Language Testing System scores onto Common European Framework of reference for Languages. This would appear to be resource intensive and, based on experience to date, something that institutions are better placed to do than the Agency.148

96. However, when we suggested that such an undertaking—at a time when the budget of the UK Border Agency is being cut by 20%149—might be difficult for the Agency to cope with, the Minister assured us that this would not be a problem.

In the course of the next few years, we will be moving many more of our basic systems onto something that we would all recognise as modern technology. Essentially, the whole computer revolution has come late to the UK Border Agency, but it is now happening. Also, we will get smarter at differentiating. That is what a lot of this whole student consultation is about.150

145 P21, The Coalition: Our programme for Government 146 A pathway provider 147 Ev w42—INTO University Partnerships (SV27) 148 Ev w48—Immigration Law Practitioners' Association (ILPA) (SV33) 149 Her Majesty’s Treasury, Comprehensive Spending Review press notices, 20 October 2010, cdn.hm- treasury.gov.uk/sr2010_pressnotices.pdf 150 Q297

97. We welcome the Government’s assurance that the UK Border Agency will be able to cope with the changes in the student immigration system. We regularly receive updates from the UK Border Agency as to their work and we will ensure that scrutiny of the student immigration system becomes a regular feature of our scrutiny of the agency.

98. The student immigration consultation was launched by the Home Office. Immigration is a Home Office issue but international students also fall within the remit of both the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. We commend the fact that there appears to have been cross-departmental consideration of the issues raised by the consultation paper. However, as the Minister for Universities and Science made clear, this cross-departmental work was carried out following the end of the consultation period:

It is absolutely right that this is put out for consultation so that all the outside bodies affected—and my understanding is that there has been 30,000 responses to the consultation—it is absolutely right to do a proper consultation, and now what is happening is there is a shared exercise by the Home Office and BIS working together now developing precise proposals in the light of that consultation.151

The consultation proposals ought to have been developed jointly by the Home Office, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. If this had been done, a number of the problems with them that we have identified probably would have been avoided.

151 Q363

5 Conclusions

99. The review of the student immigration system is part of a concerted effort by the Government to reduce net migration figures. The Government has stated that it does not wish to target legitimate students but, at the same time, we would caution against measures which could be detrimental to a thriving, successful industry. The export of education is not only economically beneficial to this country but also vital to the UK’s international relations.

100. Although the UN requires students to be included in migration figures, we are not persuaded that students are in fact migrants. Only if a student or former student seeks settlement—or the length of time they have spent in the country is excessive—should their status in the UK be regarded as that of a migrant rather than a student visitor. This is not to soften the approach to reducing immigration numbers but to recognise that not all students remain permanently, that those who do make a significant contribution to the economy, and that students who come to this country benefit us economically—through the payment of fees and wider spending—as well as contributing significantly to strengthening and enhancing Britain’s place in the world.

101. Government policy ought to be evidence-based. We are concerned that a policy based on flawed evidence could damage the UK education sector and could have wider implications. We strongly urge the Government to examine the data which it currently uses to extrapolate migration figures. Whilst we are aware that it cannot do so in time to coincide with this policy announcement, we are convinced that it ought to be a priority for the near-future.

Conclusions and recommendations

1. We are in agreement with the Government that any cap on student visas would be unnecessary and undesirable. Any cap could seriously damage the UK’s higher education industry and international reputation. We fully support the Government in seeking to eliminate bogus colleges and deterring bogus students from even attempting to enter the UK. Our predecessor Committee produced a Report on bogus colleges in the last Parliament and we note the Minister’s suggestion that the UK Border Agency has become more effective in closing them. (Paragraph 6)

Safeguarding the UK knowledge economy 2. We seek assurances from the Government that any proposed changes to the student visa regime are examined for their impact on the viability and success of UK business schools. (Paragraph 22)

3. We urge the Government to safeguard the UK knowledge economy when introducing any proposed changes to the student immigration system. We hope that, in the near future, we will reach a point where we are able to recruit the majority of the required skills from the domestic market but at present, we must rely on international students in order to ensure our international competitiveness. (Paragraph 24)

International student market 4. The international student market is estimated to be worth £40 billion to the UK economy. Education is a growth market and the UK is the second most popular destination in the world for international students. Some of the world’s leading institutions are based in the UK and we have a history of hosting international students who go on to promote Britain abroad. There is a highly competitive world market in attracting international students and as well as facing competition from English-speaking countries, many non-Anglophone countries are now providing higher education courses in English. The past experiences of the USA and Australia in reforming their visa systems highlight the sensitivity of the international market in education to countries’ student visa regimes, and it would be wise for the UK to bear this very much in mind. (Paragraph 32)

Government proposals

Language level 5. We strongly recommend that the Government does not increase the minimum language level for Highly Trusted Sponsors at any course level. However, if the Government does implement the proposal of increasing the minimum language requirement for the Tier 4 general student visa then it should work with pathway

providers to ensure that the student visitor visa is suitable for their courses. We therefore recommend that the student visitor visa is extended to 18 months, that English language and pathway students are entitled to use the route and that the extension is made permanent to ensure certainty for providers in this very important part of the higher education sector. However, if the student visitor route is expanded to accommodate pathway courses, we accept the need for close monitoring of the route. (Paragraph 40)

Secure English language tests 6. There thus appears to be scope for confusion not only about which secure English language tests would be appropriate but also about the standard required. The Government must clarify these issues before introducing any change to language requirements. (Paragraph 41)

Academic progression 7. In many instances doctoral students are originally registered for a Masters degree and formally transfer only late in the first year. We therefore recommend that academic progression be required but that an exception be made available for those who can provide good reasons for studying for a second Masters degree. (Paragraph 42)

Requiring the student to return home to apply for a new visa 8. We agree that students should not be allowed to accumulate visa after visa, merely to prolong their stay in the UK and we therefore understand the rationale of requiring a student to return to their home country in order to apply for a visa for a new course. However, given the practicalities involved and the financial implications for both the student and the UK Border Agency we consider the Government’s proposal too onerous and likely to lead to a decline in the retention rate for the high quality students the UK’s research facilities most desire. We note that applicants for other visas do not necessarily have to return to their home country in order to apply for a new or extended visa. We are not convinced of the need to change the status quo. However, if the Home Office is determined to make a change, we suggest that it investigate the possibility of requiring that any new or extended visa be validated at a UK port of entry, although we regard this as an undesirable and bureaucratic approach. (Paragraph 48)

The Post Study Work route 9. We understand the reasoning behind the proposal to close the Post Study Work route but its importance in terms of attracting international students and its use as a method of gaining work experience for certain degrees should not be underestimated. We would ideally suggest that the system be maintained, in the light of the use of post-study work options to attract the best students by our main competitors in the higher education sector. However, if it is to be reformed, we recommend that the Government give careful consideration to either a) introducing

a six month visa to look for work with the possibility of an extension of 18 months if the applicant has received the offer of skilled work or is a director of a company which has two full-time equivalent employees; b) limiting the number of institutions whose qualifications entitle the holder to post study work; and c) given concerns about maintaining UK competitiveness in STEM research, exempt STEM graduates from new restrictions until the domestic market is sufficiently robust. (Paragraph 58)

10. We recommend that any changes to the Post-Study Work route be implemented for students arriving in the new academic year, and do not affect those students who already have visas; they had a legitimate expectation that the post-study work route would be available to them after their studies. We also recommend that the route is examined for its impact on UK employment rates by the Migration Advisory Committee on an annual basis. We further recommend an examination which includes scrutinising the number of institutions whose students are eligible to apply for a Post-Study Work visa. (Paragraph 59)

Term time work 11. As the Labour Force Survey is a snapshot and does not in itself prove endemic abuse of the system, we believe that reform of the system should be based on clear evidence in order to ensure that changes will be effective and not give rise to unintended consequences. We recommend that work is undertaken urgently to quantify and clarify the scale of any abuse and the extent to which overseas students simply work to support themselves during their course of study, as happens with UK students in the USA and other countries, for example. (Paragraph 62)

12. We agree that the system by which students are allowed to undertake paid employment off-campus ought to be more closely regulated in order to prevent abuse. Nevertheless, while intended to be clear and prescriptive, in fact the proposal to limit the ability of international students to work off-campus is likely to lead to anomalies and unintended consequences. We recommend that the UK Border Agency publish clearer definitions of both campus and term-time, and write to us before any change is implemented. Within these definitions, it would be better to replace the phrase ‘term-time’ with a maximum number of weeks per year, based on a realistic assessment of the needs of genuine students and generous enough to cater for different university requirements. We also recommend that students should not be restricted in undertaking work which relates to their degree. (Paragraph 65)

Work placements 13. We urge the UK Border Agency to ensure that if introduced, the proposal to increase the study to work ratio will not affect the clinical placements necessary for healthcare professionals and those in related disciplines. We also suggest it undertakes a separate study to ensure that such a ratio will not adversely affect any other key professions. (Paragraph 67)

Dependants 14. Instead of prohibiting dependants based just on the length of course, we recommend that the level of the course be also taken into account. We recommend that those doing courses of under 12 months at Masters level or above be allowed to be accompanied by dependants, and agree with the Government that those doing courses over 12 months should be allowed to be accompanied by dependants. (Paragraph 69)

15. In light of the volume of evidence received we ask the Government to clarify what a dependant would and would not be able to do under the new rules. For instance, could they volunteer at a museum or in a school? We also recommend that, if the Government allows the dependants of international students to work only if they qualify in their own right under Tier 1 or 2, it should undertake a review of the impact within a year of the proposed changes being implemented, although it would be better to delay implementation until the situation has been researched more carefully and more robust proposals subjected to proper scrutiny. (Paragraph 71)

High risk/low risk 16. We note the assurances of the Minister that the introduction of differential requirements based on nationality will not harm diplomatic relations. However, given the fact that the Race Relations Act would need to be amended, we encourage the Government to take legal advice to ensure that such a decision will not be subject to legal or parliamentary challenge. The Government should work with relevant government authorities abroad to discourage fraud and with Highly Trusted Sponsors to make the system both simpler and more robust. (Paragraph 75)

Accreditation 17. We fully support the Government’s intention to introduce stricter accreditation procedures and welcome the desire to work with the departments responsible for education to introduce a comprehensive accreditation system. We believe it is important that accreditation ought to be equally reliant on the levels of compliance and the quality of education provided. We also recommend that this accreditation be provided by one body to avoid the current confusion. (Paragraph 77)

18. It would—to put it mildly—be inconsistent to introduce stricter accreditation procedures without re-approving at least one accreditation body, be it an existing body or a newly-created one. We are seeking urgent clarification on this issue and expect the Government to close any gap in regulation immediately and to improve the efficiency of its accreditation systems. We also expect that, in future, approval will not be allowed to lapse. (Paragraph 79)

Further recommendations 19. We believe that it is essential that enough flexibility is introduced to allow Entry Clearance Managers discretion in exceptional cases where appropriate. This will also allow an Entry Clearance Manager to recommend refusal where a student is clearly

bogus. Such changes would allow genuine students to come in and prevent the bogus students from entering, something the Points Based System does not allow for. (Paragraph 80)

20. Whilst we accept that the majority of educational agents are legitimate business people, the importance of the role within student immigration means that UK Border Agency ought to investigate options for tightening up the system. These options do not necessarily have to include further regulation but instead publicising available schemes such as the Partner Agency Scheme to Tier 4 sponsors. (Paragraph 83)

21. We are not convinced that a substantial deposit ought to be requested of every international student but recommend that the UK Border Agency commission some research, looking at the positives and negatives of having such a requirement. We are concerned that the implementation of such a system would result in only the wealthy being able to study in the UK, although we note that the cost of studying here would already be prohibitive to poorer students. (Paragraph 84)

Impact assessment 22. We believe that any changes in student immigration policy ought to be accompanied by a publicly-available impact assessment. As we noted in our Report on the Immigration Cap: “There has been a consistent tendency, under both current and previous Governments, to rush through complex changes to the immigration system... Such unnecessary haste leads to poor decision-making”. We welcome the Minister’s commitment to the publication of an impact assessment when the policy is announced. We also recommend that the student immigration system be reviewed on a regular but infrequent basis—for instance, once a Parliament—in order to ensure that the system is suitable for requirements. (Paragraph 88)

The International Passenger Survey 23. Any policy which is based on flawed data has the potential to create significant unintended consequences. We are broadly supportive of the Government’s policy of reducing immigration, but we believe that policy decisions ought to be based on the best possible information. We therefore urge the Government, as a matter of priority, to investigate whether a more reliable system of data collection than the International Passenger Survey can be used upon which to base immigration policy. (Paragraph 93)

Exit checks 24. We suggest the Government make the introduction of exit checks a priority. We recommend that the Government deliver a timetable for the reintroduction of exit checks as soon as possible. (Paragraph 94)

Future viability of Tier 4 25. We welcome the Government’s assurance that the UK Border Agency will be able to cope with the changes in the student immigration system. We regularly receive updates from the UK Border Agency as to their work and we will ensure that scrutiny of the student immigration system becomes a regular feature of our scrutiny of the agency. (Paragraph 97)

26. The consultation proposals ought to have been developed jointly by the Home Office, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. If this had been done, a number of the problems with them that we have identified probably would have been avoided. (Paragraph 98)

Conclusions 27. The review of the student immigration system is part of a concerted effort by the Government to reduce net migration figures. The Government has stated that it does not wish to target legitimate students but, at the same time, we would caution against measures which could be detrimental to a thriving, successful industry. The export of education is not only economically beneficial to this country but also vital to the UK’s international relations. (Paragraph 99)

28. Although the UN requires students to be included in migration figures, we are not persuaded that students are in fact migrants. Only if a student or former student seeks settlement—or the length of time they have spent in the country is excessive— should their status in the UK be regarded as that of a migrant rather than a student visitor. This is not to soften the approach to reducing immigration numbers but to recognise that not all students remain permanently, that those who do make a significant contribution to the economy, and that students who come to this country benefit us economically—through the payment of fees and wider spending—as well as contributing significantly to strengthening and enhancing Britain’s place in the world. (Paragraph 100)

29. Government policy ought to be evidence-based. We are concerned that a policy based on flawed evidence could damage the UK education sector and could have wider implications. We strongly urge the Government to examine the data which it currently uses to extrapolate migration figures. Whilst we are aware that it cannot do so in time to coincide with this policy announcement, we are convinced that it ought to be a priority for the near-future. (Paragraph 101)

Appendix 1: Answers to Parliamentary Questions

Parliamentary questions on ‘Student Visas’ from 7 May 2010 to 1 March 2011

Question (Mr Keith Vaz) To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what bogus colleges have been closed in each year since 2007.

Answer Prior to April 2009, the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS) and previously the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) was responsible for the register of education establishments able to bring in students from outside the European Economic Area (EEA). At the point it was replaced by the Points Based System register of licensed Tier 4 sponsors, the register listed a total of 14,838 establishments, of which approximately 4,000 regularly took non-EEA students. As of 1st February 2011 the Tier 4 register lists 2,313 licensed Tier 4 sponsors.Since 31 March 2009 the following total numbers of educational establishments' licenses have been revoked: Number 2009 16 2010 44 2011 3 Revocation of an educational establishment's sponsor licence does not prevent it from operating. The UK Border Agency is unable to close education or training providers, but it can remove their ability to recruit students from outside the European Economic Area.

Date of answer 01.03.2011

Question (Mr Keith Vaz) To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent representations she has received from foreign governments on the Government's proposals for student visas.

Answer A consultation on the student immigration system closed on 31 January. Four submissions from overseas governments were received. In addition, the UK Border Agency officials have held meetings with a number of representatives from missions in the UK. Responses to the student consultation are being considered. The results of the consultation and an impact assessment, including details of those who have responded, will be published in due course.

Date of answer 01.03.2011

Question (Mr David Amess) To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has of the number of Israeli students studying in universities in (a) England and (b) Wales; what subject each is studying; what steps (i) he is taking and (ii) plans to take in each of the next two years to promote UK universities in Israel; and if he will make a statement.

Answer The latest available information from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) on the number of Israeli domiciled enrolments to English and Welsh Higher Education Institutions is shown in the table. Figures for the 2010/11 academic year will be available in January 2012.The Government are working through the British Council to promote the United Kingdom as a study destination for international students. With its network of offices across the world including in Israel, the British Council is well placed to help UK universities to recruit students and develop links with Israeli institutions. The Government have also supported the Britain Israel Research and Academic Exchange partnership scheme (BIRAX), managed by the British Council which enables researchers from Britain and Israel to work together

on collaborative scientific projects. Israeli domiciled enrolments¹ by subject of study English and Welsh higher education institutions academic year 2009/10 Location of institution Subject of study England Wales Medicine and dentistry 10 — Subjects allied to medicine 25 0 Biological sciences 35 — Veterinary science — 0 Agriculture and related subjects — 0 Physical sciences 15 0 Mathematical sciences — 0 Computer science 10 0 Engineering and technology 25 0 Architecture, building and planning 10 — Social studies 85 — Law 45 — Business and administrative studies 80 — Mass communications and documentation 10 — Languages 20 — Historical and philosophical studies 20 0 Creative arts and design 60 — Education 65 0 Combined — 0 Total 520 15 ¹ Covers enrolments to full-time and part-time postgraduate and undergraduate courses. Note: Figures are based on a HESA standard registration population and have been rounded to the nearest five. Figures less than 5 are shown as '-', zero counts are shown as '0'. Due to rounding, columns may not sum to totals. Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA).

Date of answer 28.02.2011

Question (Mr Keith Vaz) To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many student visas were granted to citizens of each non-EU country in each of the last five years.

Answer A table has been placed in the House of Commons Library showing the number of student visas issued to nationals of each non-EU country in each of the years 2005- 10 (January to September).

Date of answer 15.02.2011

Question (Mr Matthew Offord) To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people entered the UK on student and student family member visas in (a) 2000 to 2009 and (b) 1990 to 1999.

Answer The available statistics on the number of persons given leave to enter the United Kingdom as students, excluding EEA and Swiss nationals, 1990 to 2009, are given in the following table.It must be noted that there are discontinuities in the time series of this data due to student dependant figures not being available prior to

2004 and the introduction of the student visitor category in 2007.Statistics on passengers given leave to enter the United Kingdom by purpose of journey are published annually in the Home Office Statistical Bulletin, “Control of Immigration: Statistics United Kingdom”. These publications are available from the Library of the House and from the Home Office Research, Development and Statistics website at:"www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration-asylum-stats.html" Passengers¹, ² given leave to enter the United Kingdom for the purpose of study excluding EEA and Swiss nationals, 1990- 2009 Number of journeys Tier 4 Student Student Total Students students dependents³ visitors4 1990 202,000 202,000 5— n/a 5— 1991 202,000 202,000 5— n/a 5— 1992 222,000 222,000 5— n/a 5— 1993 238,000 238,000 5— n/a 5— 1994 249,000 249,000 5— n/a 5— 1995 285,000 285,000 5— n/a 5— 1996 298,000 298,000 5— n/a 5— 1997 278,000 278,000 5— n/a 5— 1998 266,000 266,000 5— n/a 5— 1999 272,000 272,000 5— n/a 5— 2000 312,000 312,000 5— n/a 5— 2001 339,000 339,000 5— n/a 5— 2002 369,000 369,000 5— n/a 5— 2003 319,000 319,000 5— n/a 5— 2004 307,000 294,000 5— 13,100 5— 2005 297,000 284,000 5— 13,200 5— 2006 326,000 309,000 5— 17,000 5— 2007 378,000 358,000 5— 17,100 3,400 2008 391,000 227,000 5— 20,300 143,000 20096 489,000 82,100 188,000 21,100 198,000 n/a = Not available ¹ Nationals of EU accession countries are included or excluded according to their accession date ² Figures rounded to three significant figures. Figures may not sum to the totals shown because of independent rounding ³ Includes Tier 4 dependants in 2009. 4 The student visitor category provides for those persons who wish to come to the UK as a visitor and undertake a short period of study which will be completed within the period of their leave (maximum six months). 5 Not applicable. 6 Provisional figures.

Source: Home Office, Migration Statistics

Date of answer 15.02.2011

Question (Mr Matthew Offord) To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of the effects of the new student visitor visa scheme on the capacity of language schools to provide relevant courses.

Answer The new student visitor visa scheme, enabling non-EEA students to study English language for up to 11 months, was introduced on 10 January. No formal assessment has been completed. However, we will closely monitor this route and keep it under constant review.

Date of answer 15.02.2011

Question (Mr Matthew Offord) To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps her Department plans to take to reduce the number of those entering the country on a student visa who settle in the UK permanently.

Answer The Government's consultation on proposals to reform the student immigration system closed on 31 January. One of the proposals in the consultation sought views on how to ensure students return overseas on completion of their courses, rather than remain in the UK for extended periods, eventually becoming eligible to apply for settlement. We are currently considering the responses we received to the consultation and will publish the findings in due course.

Date of answer 15.02.2011

Question (Mr Conor Burns) To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many students from outside the EU were granted visas to study at a higher education institution (a) awarded and (b) not awarded highly trusted status by the UK Border Agency in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Answer Information about visas issued for study at all institutions of higher education is not held centrally and could be obtained only at a disproportionate cost. However, the estimated total number of student visas issued in the 12 months in 2009 to non-EEA nationals for study at universities, of which all but three hold Highly Trusted Status, was 133,000."Notes:""1. The figures include visas issued under both (a) Tier 4 of the Points Based System and (b) the former provision in the Immigration Rules for students, where the application was lodged before 31 March 2009.""2. This information is based on a sample of Management Information. It is provisional and subject to change.""3. The data excludes dependents, sponsored students and child students."

Date of answer 15.02.2011

Question (Mr William Bain) To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of the effects of her proposed restrictions on the number of student visas on levels of income of universities with courses attracting overseas students in (a) Scotland, (b) England, (c) Wales and (d) Northern Ireland in each of the next four years.

Answer A consultation on the student immigration system closed on 31 January 2011. The consultation sought the views of all respondents on the effect of the proposals. The results of the consultation and an impact assessment will be published in due course.

Date of answer 10.02.2011

Question (Mr Keith Vaz) To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many

student visas were granted to citizens of Bangladesh in each of the last five years.

Answer The number of student visas issued to nationals of Bangladesh in each year since 2005 is shown in the following table. Those issued after 31 March 2009 were issued under tier 4 of the points based system. Student visas issued to Nationals of Bangladesh Visas issued 2005 2961 2006 3375 2007 3444 2008 3314 2009 17303 2010¹ 6732 ¹January to September 2010 only. These data are unpublished and are based on management information. They are provisional and subject to change.The steep rise in visas issued in 2009 is evidence of serious abuse of the student entry route following the introduction of tier 4. The Government are determined to stop this abuse and is therefore currently conducting a major review of student visas.

Date of answer 02.02.2011

Question (Mr William Bain) To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has conducted of the effect on the economy in (a) Glasgow, (b) Scotland and (c) the UK of the UK Border Agency's proposed restrictions on the conditions applicable to grants of student visas.

Answer The consultation on the student immigration system closes on 31 January. The consultation is seeking the views of all respondents on the effect of the proposals. The results of the consultation will be announced in due course.

Date of answer 31.01.2011

Question (Fiona O’Donnell) To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for the Home Department on the effect on universities in Scotland of changes to student visas.

Answer The Secretary of State for Scotland and I [David Mundell] are in regular discussion with ministerial colleagues in the Home Office, including on how changes to the immigration system impact on Scotland.

Date of answer 27.01.2011

Question (Fiona O’Donnell) To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will publish each communication he has received on the Home Office consultation by the Home Office on changes to student visas.

Answer The Government's consultation on student immigration is currently under way and closes on 31 January. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not standard practice to publish communications between Ministers on the development of Government policy.

Date of answer 27.01.2011

Question (Mr Matthew Offord) To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether her review of student visas will examine the ability of students to bring their dependents with them to the UK.

Answer On 7 December the Government launched a public consultation on reform of the student immigration system; copies are available in the House Library. Section 7 of the consultation considers limiting the entitlements of students to bring their

family members with them to the UK.

Date of answer 24.01.2011

Question (Nicholas Soames) To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many appeals against refusal of entry clearance were lodged by those who had applied for student visas in each year since 2000; and how many of those appeals were upheld in each year.

Answer The number of appeals against the refusal of student visas that were (a) lodged and (b) allowed, in each calendar year since 2004, is shown in the following table. This information is not available for previous years. Appeals Appeals lodged allowed 2004 13,315 478 2005 14,181 2,202 2006 25,141 6,562 2007 33,067 7,452 2008 37,125 8,052 2009 ¹19,699 ²9,645 ¹ Since March 2009, long-term student applications have been considered under tier four of the points-based system and do not attract a full right of appeal. However, an unsuccessful applicant is able to lodge an appeal on residual grounds, namely under provisions of the Human Rights Act 1998 and Race Relations Act 1976. ² The figures show that in 2009, a total of 9,645 appeals in this category were allowed. Many of the decisions to which these appeals relate are likely to have been made in 2008 when there was a significant increase in long-term student applications prior to the introduction of the points-based system. Notes: 1. This data is based on Management Information. It has not been published and should be treated as provisional. 2. The data before 2007 may not be complete.

Date of answer 20.01.2011

Question (Mr Keith Vaz) To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many student visa applications from each country were (a) accepted and (b) rejected for study for (i) English language courses, (ii) foundation courses, (iii) undergraduate degrees, (iv) postgraduate taught degrees and (v) postgraduate research degrees in each of the last three years.

Answer A table has been placed in the Library showing the number of student visas that were (a) issued and (b) refused for each nationality in each of the last three years. The UK Border Agency is unable to break the figures down into type of course or level of study from central records. This information could be produced only by checking individual records which would incur disproportionate cost.

Date of answer 14.12.2010

Question (Mr Gordon Marsden) To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will take into account the conclusions of the British Council's report on Global value training - the value of UK education and training exports: an update, when considering changes to the rules governing student visas.

Answer [holding answer 13 December 2010]: This report focused on the value to the UK economy of UK education and training, but does not relate directly to the value of

international students entering through Tier 4 of the points-based system. For example, it includes income generated for UK institutions by campuses overseas, and off-campus expenditure of business visitors to the UK who happen to be staying in university accommodation.

Date of answer 14.12.2010

Question (Angie Bray) To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans she has for the future of the student visa system.

Answer On 7 December the Government launched a public consultation on reform of the student immigration system. A copy has been placed in the House Library.

Date of answer 14.12.2010

Question (Mr David Blunkett) To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many student visas for postgraduate study in England and Wales in the 2009-10 academic year were granted for citizens of Pakistan.

Answer Information about student visas issued specifically for postgraduate study in the UK is not held centrally by the UK Border Agency and could be obtained only by inspecting individual records at a disproportionate cost. This applies to all student visa applicants regardless of their nationality.

Date of answer 13.09.2010

Answer The number of applications for student visas that were refused in the financial years 2009-10, 2008-09 and 2007-08 are given in the following table. I have given data for the financial years as most student visa applicants apply in the summer months, before the start of the academic year. Student visa applications¹ Financial year Refused 2007/08 92,859 2008/09 96,850 2009/10 94,774 ¹ Excludes dependents and student visitors. Note: The data in this table are based on management information and as such have not been quality assured. They are provisional and subject to change.

Date of answer 30.06.2010

Question (Joan Ruddock) To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applications for student visas were (a) granted and (b) refused in 2009; and how many such applications from each country of origin have been (i) granted and (ii) refused in 2010 to date.

Answer The total number of student visas¹ issued and refused in 2009 was 303,635 and 104,536, respectively. The number of student visas issued and refused in the first Quarter of 2010 by nationality of the applicant is shown in the following table:¹ Excludes student visitors Student visa applications: Main applicants January to March 2010 Nationality Applications Issued Refused Afghanistan 106 66 45

Albania 84 45 41 Algeria 103 68 48 Andorra 0 0 0 Angola 63 53 21 Antigua and Barbuda 1 1 0 Argentina 28 28 7 Armenia 12 9 4 Australia 74 81 12 Azerbaijan 53 31 22 Bahamas 6 5 4 Bahrain 91 79 13 Bangladesh 7,558 5,024 2,617 Barbados 7 9 0 Belarus 19 13 7 Belize 1 1 1 Benin 2 2 0 Bhutan 4 3 3 Bolivia 13 11 5 Bosnia and Herzegovina 13 9 3 Botswana 25 18 6 Brazil 756 638 125 British national overseas 65 56 24 Brunei 29 25 3 Burkina 5 4 2 Burma (Myanmar) 150 65 133 Burundi 3 2 1 Cambodia 14 7 6 Cameroon 198 123 102 Canada 141 122 19 Cape Verde 2 0 2 Central African Republic 2 0 2 Chad 2 1 1 Chile 57 50 9 China 2,414 2,192 2,461 Colombia 1,229 957 2,52 Comoros 3 2 1 Congo 24 4 25 Costa Rica 3 3 0 Croatia 22 12 9 Cuba 2 1 1 Cyprus 0 1 1 Democratic republic of Congo 21 7 16 Djibouti 5 0 5 Dominica 3 2 1 Dominican Republic 5 5 0 Ecuador 51 37 19 Egypt 153 79 50 El Salvador 1 0 0 Equatorial Guinea 12 9 3 Eritrea 1 0 1 Ethiopia 13 11 4 Gabon 6 0 6 Gambia 75 44 30

Georgia 54 37 22 Germany 2 1 0 Ghana 137 78 88 Grenada 3 4 0 Guatemala 3 1 3 Guinea 21 9 12 Guyana 5 3 3 Haiti 2 0 1 Honduras 3 4 0 Hong Kong 119 102 24 Hungary 1 0 0 India 18,188 9,231 8,257 Indonesia 89 66 39 Iran 730 390 328 Iraq 70 37 30 Israel 30 16 13 Ivory Coast 25 6 22 Jamaica 11 8 3 Japan 945 871 73 Jordan 132 88 48 Kazakhstan 120 154 40 Kenya 131 72 69 Kosovo 19 8 11 Kuwait 144 129 23 Kyrgyzstan 38 13 31 Laos 1 1 0 Lebanon 52 38 26 Lesotho 11 5 6 Liberia 1 1 2 Libya 651 605 57 Macau 7 6 1 Macedonia 32 24 8 Madagascar 6 3 2 Malawi 29 15 17 Malaysia 390 300 101 Maldives 2 0 2 Mali 13 6 8 Mauritania 7 2 5 Mauritius 86 72 20 Mexico 149 106 82 Moldova 6 4 5 Mongolia 119 58 135 Montenegro 6 4 2 Morocco 135 88 45 Mozambique 4 4 0 Namibia 4 2 2 Nauru 3 0 1 Nepal 2,807 7,42 1,105 New Zealand 18 22 3 Nicaragua 2 2 0 Niger 3 1 2 Nigeria 2,468 1,716 1,082 Oman 72 70 7

Pakistan 9,195 5,154 4,585 Panama 2 1 2 Papua New Guinea 1 1 0 Peru 50 44 16 Philippines 3,481 1,071 1,002 Qatar 96 95 7 Russia 224 163 100 Rwanda 28 16 12 Sao Tome and Principe 0 0 0 Saudi Arabia 1,896 1,657 263 Senegal 62 36 26 Serbia 31 23 9 Seychelles 4 3 1 Sierra Leone 32 16 21 Singapore 53 40 16 Somalia 6 1 4 South Africa 99 60 35 South Korea 1,562 1,605 1,29 Sri Lanka 2,848 1,905 1,086 St Kitts and Nevis 0 1 0 St Lucia 8 7 3 St Vincent 4 4 0 Stateless (art one 1951 convention) 1 1 0 Sudan 38 21 18 Swaziland 2 1 1 Syria 88 43 53 Taiwan 276 272 24 Tajikistan 3 2 3 Tanzania 130 67 89 Thailand 747 565 129 Togo 9 3 5 Tonga 1 2 0 Trinidad and Tobago 29 19 12 Tunisia 20 14 8 Turkey 1,427 1,070 429 Turkmenistan 77 47 30 Uganda 56 37 35 Ukraine 72 56 33 United Arab Emirates 163 154 9 United nations 0 1 0 United states 748 788 98 Unspecified Nationality 3 2 3 Uruguay 3 3 1 Uzbekistan 82 37 68 Venezuela 85 59 36 Vietnam 369 262 106 Refugee 1951 Convention 11 4 6 Hong Kong 8 8 2 Palestinian Authority 45 25 24 Yemen 93 35 49 Yugoslavia 4 3 2 Zambia 60 26 29 Zimbabwe 32 17 19

Total 66,200 40,787 26,677 The data in this table is based on Management Information and as such has not been quality assured. It is provisional and subject to change

Date of answer 23.06.2010

Question To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many student visas have been issued to (a) EU and (b) non-EU students in academic year 2009-10.

Answer Under the Immigration (European Economic Area) Regulations 2006, EEA nationals and their family members have the right of free movement within the territory of EEA member states. They may therefore come to the UK to seek work, take up employment or study without applying for Leave to Enter. No student visas are therefore issued to EEA nationals. The total number of student visas issued to non- EEA nationals in the Financial Year 2009-10 was 288,010. This figure is based on the Control of Immigration: Quarterly Statistical Summaries which have been published on the UK Border Agency's website, www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk Most non-EEA nationals who were issued with visas in 2009 in order to study in the UK in the current academic year would have been issued with visas during the summer months, and would therefore be included in the total for the financial year given above.

Date of answer 17.06.2010

Appendix 2: National Qualifications Framework

Level Examples of NQF152 Examples of FHEQ153 Examples of QCF154 qualifications qualifications qualifications

Entry - Entry level certificates - Awards, Certificates, and - English for Speakers of Diplomas at entry level Other Languages (ESOL) - Foundation Learning Tier - Skills for Life pathways at entry level - Functional Skills at entry - Functional Skills at entry level (English, maths and level ICT)

1 - GCSEs grades D-G - BTEC Awards, Certificates, - BTEC Introductory and Diplomas at level 1 Diplomas and Certificates - Functional Skills at level 1 - OCR Nationals - OCR Nationals - Key Skills at level 1 - Foundation Learning Tier - NVQs at level 1 pathways - Skills for Life - NVQs at level 1

2 - GCSEs grades A*-C - BTEC Awards, Certificates, - BTEC First Diplomas and and Diplomas at level 2 Certificates - Functional Skills at level 2 - OCR Nationals - OCR Nationals - Key Skills level 2 - NVQs at level 2 - NVQs at level 2 - Skills for Life

3 - A levels - BTEC Awards, Certificates, - GCE in applied subjects and Diplomas at level 3 - International Baccalaureate - BTEC Nationals - Key Skills level 3 - OCR Nationals - NVQs at level 3 - NVQs at level 3 - BTEC Diplomas, Certificates and Awards - BTEC Nationals - OCR Nationals

4 - NVQs at level 4 - certificates of higher - BTEC Professional Diplomas - BTEC Professional education Certificates and Awards Diplomas, Certificates and - higher national certificates - HNCs Awards - NVQs at level 4

5 - HNCs and HNDs - diplomas of higher - HNDs - NVQs at level 5 education - BTEC Professional Diplomas, - BTEC Professional - Foundation Degrees Certificates and Awards Diplomas, Certificates and - higher national diplomas - NVQs at level 5 Awards

6 - National Diploma in - bachelors degrees - BTEC Advanced Professional Professional Production - bachelors degrees with Diplomas, Certificates and

152 National Qualifications Framework 153 Framework for Higher Education Qualifications 154 Qualifications and Credit Framework (the framework for vocational, or work-related qualifications)

Skills honours Awards - BTEC Advanced - graduate certificates and Professional Diplomas, diplomas Certificates and Awards - Professional Graduate Certificate in Education

7 - Diploma in Translation - masters degrees - BTEC Advanced Professional - BTEC Advanced - integrated masters degrees Diplomas, Certificates and Professional Diplomas, - postgraduate certificates Awards Certificates and Awards - postgraduate diplomas

8 - specialist awards - doctoral degrees - Award, Certificate and Diploma in strategic direction

Appendix 3: List of Highly Trusted Sponsors

5 E Ltd London

A & S Training College Ltd London

A+ English Ltd Sheffield

Abacus College Oxford

Abbey College Cambridge Cambridge

Abbey College Manchester Manchester

Abbey College London

Abbey College Birmingham

Aberdeen College Aberdeen

Aberystwyth University Aberystwyth

Abingdon and Witney College Abingdon

Abingdon School Abingdon

Academy Sjw (St John's Wood School) London

Accrington & Rossendale College Accrington

Ackworth School Pontefract

Adam Smith College Kirkcaldy

Albemarle Independent College London

Al-Maktoum Institute For Arabic and Islamic Studies Dundee

Alpha Omega College Cardiff

American Institute For Foreign Study London

American University Of The Caribbean Kingston-Upon-Thames

Amersham & Wycombe College Amersham

Anglia Ruskin University Chelmsford

Anglo European School Of English Bournemouth

Anglo-Continental Bournemouth

Anglolang Scarborough Ltd T/A Anglolang Academy Of English Scarborough

Anniesland College Glasgow

Aquinas College Stockport

Architectural Association School Of Architecture London

Ashbourne College London

Ashridge (Bonar Law Memorial) Trust Berkhamsted

Ashville College Harrogate

Askham Bryan College York

Aston University Birmingham

Ayr College Ayr

Azad University (Ir) In Oxford Farmoor

Bales College London

Bangor University Bangor

Barnfield College Luton

Barony College Dumfries

Barry College Barry

Basil Paterson College Edinburgh

Basingstoke College Of Technology Basingstoke

Bath Academy Bath

Bath Spa University Bath

Batley Grammar School Batley

Bedford College Bedford

Bedfordshire College Luton

Beet Language Centre Bournemouth

Belfast Metropolitan College Belfast

Bellerbys College Brighton Brighton

Bellerbys College Cambridge Cambridge

Bellerbys College London London

Bellerbys College Oxford Oxford

Bethany School Ltd Tonbridge

Bilborough College Nottingham

Bilston Community College Bilston

Birkbeck College, University Of London London

Birmingham City University Birmingham

Birmingham Metropolitan College Birmingham

Bishop Grosseteste University College Lincoln Lincoln

Blackburn College Blackburn

Blackpool and The Fylde College Blackpool

Blake College London

Bls English Bury St Edmunds

Bolton College Bolton

Bootham School York

Boston College Boston

Boston University London Programme London

Bosworth Independent College Northampton

Bournemouth Business School International Bournemouth

Bournemouth Montessori Centre Bournemouth

Bournemouth University Poole

Bournville College Of Further Education Birmingham

Bracknell & Wokingham College Bracknell

Bradfield College Reading

Bradford College Bradford

Brampton College London

Bridgwater College Bridgwater

Brigham Young University London

Brighton College Brighton

Bristol Grammar School Bristol

Bristol Old Vic Theatre School Ltd Bristol

British Study Centres London London

British Study Centres Oxford

Brockenhurst College Brockenhurst

Bromley College Of Further and Higher Education Bromley

Bromsgrove School Bromsgrove

Brooke House College Market Harborough

Brooklands College Weybridge

Brooksby Melton College Melton Mowbray

Brunel University Uxbridge

Buckingham College Senior School Harrow

Bucks New University High Wycombe

Buckswood School Near Hastings

Burgess Hill School For Girls Burgess Hill

Cahro Limited Braintree

Calderdale Colleges Corporation Halifax

Cambridge Academy Of English Cambridge

Cambridge Arts & Sciences Cambridge

Cambridge Centre For Sixth-Form Studies Cambridge

Cambridge Regional College Cambridge

Cambridge Ruskin International College Cambridge

Cambridge Seminars Tutorial College Cambridge

Cambridge Tutors College Croydon

Campbell Harris London

Canford School Wimborne

Canterbury Christ Church University Canterbury

Canterbury College Canterbury

Capernwray Missionary Fellowship Of Torchbearers Carnforth

Capital School Of English Bournemouth

Cardiff College International At Coleg Glan Hafren Cardiff

Cardiff Sixth Form College Cardiff

Cardiff University Cardiff

Cardonald College Glasgow Glasgow

Care In Hand Ltd Saundersfoot

Carnegie College Dunfermline

Carshalton College Carshalton

Casterton School Carnforth

Castle College Nottingham Nottingham

Caterham School Ltd Caterham

Cats Canterbury Canterbury

Central Bedfordshire College Dunstable

Central College Glasgow Glasgow

Central School Of Ballet London

Central Sussex College Crawley

Centre Of English Studies Worthing

Chelmsford College Chelmsford

Chelsea Independent College London

Cheltenham College Cheltenham

Cherwell College Oxford

Chesterfield College Chesterfield

Chetham's School Of Music Manchester

Chichester College Chichester

Chigwell School Chigwell

Chippendale School Of Furniture Haddington

Christ College Brecon

Christ The Redeemer College London

Churchill House School Of English Language Ramsgate

Cirencester College Cirencester

Citizen 2000 Education Institute London

City & Islington College London

City Banking College Limited London

City College Brighton and Hove Brighton

City College Coventry Coventry

City College Norwich Norwich

City College Plymouth Plymouth

City College, Birmingham Birmingham

City Of Bath College Bath

City Of Bristol College Bristol

City Of Sunderland College Sunderland

City Of Westminster College London

City Of Wolverhampton College Wolverhampton

City University London

Clydebank College Clydebank

Cobham Hall School Nr Gravesend

Cokethorpe School Witney

Colchester English Study Centre Colchester

Colchester Institute Colchester

Coleg Gwent Usk

Coleg Menai Bangor

Coleg Sir Gar Llanelli

College Of International Education Oxford

College Of North West London London

Collingham Independent Gcse & Sixth Form College London

Concorde International Canterbury

Conservatoire For Dance and Drama London

Contemporary Dance Trust London

Cornwall College St Austell

Cothill Educational Trust Abingdon

Coulsdon College Coulsdon

Courtauld Institute Of Art London

Covenant School Of Ministries: School Of The Word Manchester

Coventry University Coventry

Cranfield University Bedford

Craven College Skipton

Crest Schools Of English London

Croydon College Croydon

Cumbernauld College Cumbernauld

Darul Uloom Al Arabiya Al Islamiya Holcombe

David Game College London

Davies Laing and Dick College London

De Montfort University Leicester

Derby College Derby

Devon School Of English Paignton

Dollar Academy Dollar

Doncaster College Doncaster

Doncaster Deaf Trust Doncaster

Dover College Dover

D'overbroeck's College Oxford

Downe House School Thatcham

Dudley College Dudley

Duff Miller & Co (London Tutors) Ltd London

Dulwich College London

Dumfries & Galloway College Dumfries

Dundee College Dundee

Durham School Durham

Eac Language Centres (Uk) Ltd Edinburgh

Ealing College Upper School London

Ealing Hammersmith and West London College London

Ealing Independent College Ealing

East Durham College Peterlee

East London College London

East Surrey College Redhill

Eastbourne College Eastbourne

Ec Brighton (House Of English Ltd) Brighton

Ec Cambridge (Cambridge Centre For English Studies Limited) Cambridge

Eden House College London

Edge Hill University Ormskirk

Edinburgh College Of Art Edinburgh

Edinburgh Napier University Edinburgh

Edinburgh School Of English Edinburgh

Edinburgh's Telford College Edinburgh

Ef International Academy Torquay Torquay

Ef International Language Schools Oxford

Ejef Study Centre High Wycombe

Ellesmere College Limited Ellesmere

Elmwood College Cupar

Elt Banbury Ltd Banbury

Embassy Ces Hastings St Leonards On Sea

Embassy Ces Oxford Oxford

English In Chester Chester

English Language Centre, York York

Enhanced Care Training Newport

Epsom College Epsom

Excel College Manchester

Excel English (Language School Ltd) London

Exeter Academy Exeter

Exeter College Exeter

Farlington School Trust Ltd Horsham

Farnborough College Of Technology Farnborough

Filton College Bristol

Finance & Business Training Ltd Birmingham

Finborough School Stowmarket

Forth Valley College Falkirk

Foundationcampus London London

Foyle Language School Ltd Derry

Framlingham College Framlingham

Frances King School Of English London

Fulneck School Leeds

Fyling Hall School Whitby

Gateshead College Gateshead

Gateshead Talmudical College Gateshead

Gemological Institute Of America London (Gia England T/A Gia London London)

Glasgow Caledonian University Glasgow

Glasgow College Of Nautical Studies Glasgow

Glasgow International College Glasgow

Glasgow Metropolitan College Glasgow

Gloucestershire College Cheltenham

Glyndwr University Wrexham

Goldsmiths University Of London London

Gordonstoun Schools Limited Elgin

Gorseinon College Swansea

Grantham College Grantham

Great Yarmouth College Great Yarmouth

Greenacre School For Girls Banstead

Greene's Tutorial College Oxford

Greenwich Community College London

Greenwich School Of Management Greenwich

Gresham's School Holt

Guildhall School Of Music & Drama London

Haileybury and Imperial Service College Hertford

Hampstead School Of English London

Harper Adams University College Newport

Harrogate Ladies' College Harrogate

Harrogate Language Academy Harrogate

Harrogate Tutorial College Harrogate

Harrow Academy Uk Harrow

Harrow College Harrow Weald

Harrow School Harrow On The Hill

Hartlepool 6th Form College Hartlepool

Hartpury College Gloucester

Havering College Of Further & Higher Education Hornchurch

Henley College Coventry Coventry

Heriot-Watt International Study Centre Edinburgh

Heriot-Watt University Edinburgh

Hethersett Old Hall School Norwich

Heythrop College London

Highbury College Portsmouth Portsmouth

Highgate Academy For Professional Development Newhaven

Hilderstone College Broadstairs

Hove College Brighton and Hove

Hull College Group Hull

Hurtwood House Dorking

Icmp (Uk) Ltd Kilburn

Ils English Nottingham

Imperial College London London

Inchbald School Of Design London

Inlingua Cheltenham Cheltenham

Institute Of Education London

Institute Of International Education In London (Registered As London Humanet International Ltd)

Institute Of Ismaili Studies London

Institute Of St Anselm Cliftonville

Interlink College Of Technology & Bus.Studies London

International Christian College Glasgow

International House Aberdeen Aberdeen

International House Belfast Belfast

International House Bristol Ltd Bristol

International House Newcastle Newcastle Upon Tyne

International House Trust Limited (T/A International House London) London

International School Of Corporeal Mime London

International School Of Creative Arts Wexham

Internexus At Regent's College London

Into Manchester Limited Manchester

Inverness College Inverness

Isis Brighton Brighton

Isis Greenwich London

Isis Oxford School Of English Oxford

Isle Of Wight College Newport

Islington Centre For English London

Itchen College Southampton

James Watt College Greenock

John Leggott College Scunthorpe

John Ruskin College South Croydon

Kaplan International College London London

Kaplan International College Manchester Manchester

Kaplan International Colleges Bournemouth Bournemouth

Kaplan International Colleges Cambridge Cambridge

Kaplan International Colleges Edinburgh Edinburgh

Kaplan International Colleges London Covent Garden London

Kaplan International Colleges London Leicester Square London

Kaplan International Colleges Oxford Oxford

Kaplan International Colleges Torquay

Keele University Newcastle-Under-Lyme

Kensington and Chelsea College London

Kent College Canterbury Canterbury

King Edward's School, Bath Bath

King George V College Southport

Kings Bournemouth Bournemouth

King's College London London

Kings London Beckenham

Kings Oxford Oxford

Kingsley School Bideford

Kingston College Further Education Corporation Kingston Upon Thames

Kingston University Kingston Upon Thames

Kirklees College Huddersfield

Klc School Of Design London

Lake School Of English Oxford Oxford

Lal Language Centres (Uk) Ltd Paignton

Lambeth College London

Lancaster University International Study Centre Lancaster

Lancaster University Lancaster

Langside College Glasgow

Language Link London Ltd. London

Language Specialists International Portsmouth

Language Studies International, London Central London

Language Studies International Cambridge

Language Studies International Hove

Language Teaching Centres Uk Ltd (Amvic Uk Ltd) Eastbourne

Language Upon Thames Richmond

Languagues Plus/Sprachcaffe Hove

Lansdowne College London

Lathallan School Montrose

Le Cordon Bleu Limited London

Leeds City College Leeds

Leeds College Of Art Leeds

Leeds College Of Music Leeds

Leeds English Language School Leeds

Leeds Metropolitan University Leeds

Leeds Trinity University College Leeds

Leicester College Leicester

Leicester Commercial College Leicester

Leicester High School For Girls Leicester

Leicester Montessori School Leicester

Leiths School Of Food and Wine London

Leo Baeck College London

Lewisham College London

Lime House School Carlisle

Lincoln Christ's Hospital School Lincoln

Lincoln College Lincoln

Liverpool Community College Liverpool

Liverpool Hope University Liverpool

Liverpool International College Liverpool

Liverpool International Language Academy Liverpool

Liverpool John Moores University Liverpool

Liverpool School Of Tropical Medicine Liverpool

Llandovery College Llandovery

Llandrillo College (Coleg Llandrillo Cymru) Rhos-On-Sea

Lomond School Ltd Helensburgh

London Academy Of Dressmaking & Design London

London Academy Of Music and Dramatic Art London

London Business School London

London College Of Business Ltd. Barking

London College Of International Business Studies London

London Electronics College London

London Hotel School Chiswick

London International College Of Business and Technology (London Ibt Uxbridge Ltd)

London International Study Centre Tolworth

London Metropolitan University London

London School Of Beauty & Make-Up London

London School Of Business And Finance London

London School Of Commerce (A Division Of St.Piran's School (Gb) London Limited

London School Of Economics and Political Science London

London School Of Law London

London School Of Sound London

London School Of Traditional Massage (Lstm) Bromley

London South Bank University London

London St. Andrew's College London

London Study Centre London

London Theological Seminary London

Loughborough College Loughborough

Loughborough University Loughborough

Lowestoft College Lowestoft

Loxdale English Centre/Swedish Folk High School Brighton

Lucton School Leominster

Magna Carta College Oxford

Malvern College Malvern

Malvern St James Great Malvern

Manchester International College Manchester

Manchester Metropolitan University Manchester

Mander Portman Woodward Independent College Birmingham

Mander Portman Woodward School London

Mander Portman Woodward Cambridge

Margate Language Centre Margate

Maria Montessori Training Organisation (The) London

Mayfair School Of English Ltd London

Mayflower College Plymouth

Melton College, York York

Merchiston Castle School Edinburgh

Meridian Business School London

Met Film School London

Middlesex University London

Midlands Academy Of Business & Technology Leicester

Mill Hill School Foundation London

Milton Keynes College Milton Keynes

Mm Oxford Study Services Oxford

Moira House Girls School Eastbourne

Moreton Hall Educational Trust Limited Oswestry

Motherwell College Motherwell

Moulton College Northampton

Mount St. Mary's Chesterfield

Myerscough College Preston

Neath Port Talbot College Neath

Nescot Ewell

New College Durham Framwellgate Moor

New College Nottingham Nottingham

New College Stamford Stamford

New Hall School Trust Chelmsford

Newbury Hall School Newbury

Newcastle College Newcastle Upon Tyne

Newcastle Under Lyme College Newcastle-Under-Lyme

Newcastle University Newcastle Upon Tyne

Newham College Of Further Education London

Newman University College Birmingham

North Glasgow College Glasgow

North Warwickshire and Hinckley College Nuneaton

North West Kent College Of Technology Further Education Dartford Corporation

North West Regional College Londonderry

Northampton College Northampton

Northamptonshire Independent Grammar School Charity Trust Limited Northampton

Norwich University College Of The Arts Norwich

Notre Dame Catholic Sixth Form College Leeds

Nottingham Trent International College Nottingham

Nottingham Trent University Registry Nottingham

Oaklands College St Albans

Oatridge College Broxburn

Oise Bristol Bristol

Olc (Europe) Ltd Incorporating Eettec Ltd. Bolton

Oswestry School Oswestry

Oundle School Peterborough

Oxford and Cherwell Valley College Oxford

Oxford Aviation Academy Oxford

Oxford Brookes University Oxford

Oxford House School Of English Oxford

Oxford International College Oxford

Oxford International Study Centre Oxford

Oxford Language Centre Oxford

Oxford Tutorial College Oxford

P&M Training Solutions Ltd T/A Pitman Training Centre Sutton Coldfield

Padworth College Reading

Pembrokeshire College Haverfordwest

Perth College Perth

Peterborough Regional College Peterborough

Petroc Barnstaple

Pilot Ims Ltd Birmingham

Pitman Training (Nottingham) Nottingham

Plumpton College Near Lewes

Plymouth College & St Dunstan's Abbey Schools Charity Plymouth

Point Blank Music College London

Polam Hall School Darlington

Princes College School Of English London

Prior's Field School Godalming

Purley Language College London

Queen Ethelburga's Collegiate Foundation York

Queen Margaret University Musselburgh

Queen Mary University Of London London

Queen Mary's College Basingstoke

Queen's College, Taunton Taunton

Queen's University Belfast Belfast

Ratcliffe College Leicester

Ravensbourne London

Ray Cochrane Cidesco International Beauty School London

Redbridge College Romford

Regent College Harrow

Regent's College London

Reid Kerr College Paisley

Rendcomb College Nr Cirencester

Richard Huish College Taunton

Richmond Adult Community College Richmond

Richmond The American International University In London Richmond

Rikkyo School In England Horsham

Rishworth School Halifax

Riviera English School Ltd Torquay

Rochester Independent College Rochester

Roehampton University London

Rose Bruford College Sidcup

Rose Of York Language School London

Rossall School Fleetwood

Royal Academy Of Dance London

Royal Academy Of Dramatic Art London

Royal Academy Of Music London

Royal College Of Art London

Royal Holloway and Bedford New College Egham

Royal Northern College Of Music Manchester

Royal Scottish Academy Of Music and Drama Glasgow

Royal Veterinary College, University Of London London

Royal Welsh College Of Music & Drama Ltd Cardiff

Ruthin School Charity Ruthin

Rydal Penrhos Colwyn Bay

Sac (The Scottish Agricultural College) Scotland

Saint Felix Schools Southwold

Saint Michael's College Tenbury Wells

Salford City College Manchester

Sandwell College Smethwick

Sassoon Academy London

Scarborough Sixth Form College Scarborough

School Of Business And Law (Sbl) ( A Division Of St Piran's School (Gb) London Ltd)

School Of Oriental and African Studies London

Sedbergh School Sedbergh

Severnvale Academy Shrewsbury

Shane Global Language Centres London

Shebbear College Beaworthy

Sheffield Hallam University Sheffield

Sheffield International College Sheffield

Sherborne School For Girls Sherborne

Sherborne School Sherborne

Shrewsbury College Of Arts and Technology Shrewsbury

Shrewsbury School Shrewsbury

Sidcot School Winscombe

Skola English In Exeter Exeter

Skola English In London London

Solihull College Solihull

Sophies Recruitment Services Ltd Park Royal

South Birmingham College Digbeth

South Cheshire College Crewe

South Eastern Regional College Lisburn

South Essex College Of Further & Higher Education Southend On Sea

South London College London

South Nottingham College Nottingham

South Thames College London

South Tyneside College South Shields

Southampton City College Southampton

Southampton Solent University Southampton

Southern Regional College Newry

Southgate College London

Speak School Lancashire

St Andrew's College Cambridge

St Benedict's School Ealing

St David's Catholic College Cardiff

St George International London

St George's School Ascot Trust Limited Ascot

St George's, University Of London Tooting

St Giles International Brighton Brighton

St Giles International Eastbourne Eastbourne

St Giles International London Highgate London

St Giles London Central London

St Helens College St Helens

St John's College Cardiff

St Joseph's College Ipswich

St Lawrence College Ramsgate

St Leonards-Mayfield School Mayfield

St Martha's Senior School Barnet

St Mary's School Calne

St Mary's University College Twickenham

St Teresa's School Dorking

St. Bees School St. Bees

St. Clare's, Oxford Oxford

St. George's School, Edgbaston Birmingham

St. Michael's School Limited Llanelli

Stafford House School Of English Canterbury

Staffordshire University Stoke-On-Trent

Stanmore College Stanmore

Stevenson College Edinburgh Edinburgh

Stockton Riverside College Thornaby

Stockton Sixth Form College Stockton-On-Tees

Stow College Glasgow

Stratford Upon Avon College Stratford-Upon-Avon

Strathallan School Perth

Strode College Street

Students International Ltd Melton Mowbray

Studio Cambridge Cambridge

Suffolk New College Ipswich

Surrey Language Centre Farnham

Sussex Coast College Hastings East Sussex

Sussex Downs College Lewes

Sutton Valence School Maidstone

Swansea College Swansea

Swansea Metropolitan University Swansea

Swansea University Swansea

Swindon College Swindon

T&L Training Ltd Dagenham

Talbot Heath School Trust Ltd Bournemouth

Tante Marie Limited Woking

Tasis The American School In England Egham

Teesside University Middlesbrough

Teikyo University Of Japan In Durham Durham

Telford College Of Arts & Technology Telford

Tettenhall College Wolverhampton

Thames Valley University London

Thanet College Broadstairs

The Abbey College Malvern

The Arts University College At Bournemouth Poole

The Bell Concord Educational Trust Ltd Shrewsbury

The Blackpool Sixth Form College Blackpool

The Bournemouth & Poole College Poole

The Bristol Language Centre Ltd Bristol

The Central School Of Speech and Drama London

The Cheltenham Ladies' College Cheltenham

The Chiltern College Reading

The Circus Space London

The College Of Haringey, Enfield and North East London London

The College Of Practical Homeopathy London

The College Of Richard Collyer Horsham

The English Language Centre Hove

The Glasgow School Of Art Glasgow

The Godolphin School Salisbury

The Grimsby Institute Of Further & Higher Education Grimsby

The Hampstead Garden Suburb Institute London

The Institute Of Cancer Research Sutton

The Japan Royal Academy Of Homoeopathy London

The King's School Ely

The Liverpool Institute For Performing Arts Liverpool

The London School Of English London

The Manchester College Manchester

The Mount School (York) Ltd York

The Open University Milton Keynes

The Park School (Yeovil) Ltd Yeovil

The Proclamation Trust London

The Purcell School Bushey

The Read School Selby

The Red Maids' School Bristol

The Robert Gordon University Aberdeen

The Royal Agricultural College Cirencester

The Royal Ballet School London

The Royal College Of Music London

The Royal High School Gdst Bath

The Royal School Dungannon Dungannon

The Royal School Haslemere

The School Of Pharmacy, University Of London London

The Sheffield College Sheffield

The Stephen Perse Foundation Cambridge

The United World College Of The Atlantic Ltd Llantwit Major

The University Of Bolton Bolton

The University Of Buckingham Buckingham

The University Of Cambridge Cambridge

The University Of Northampton Northampton

The University Of Salford Salford

The University Of Sheffield Sheffield

The University Of Winchester Winchester

The University Of Worcester Worcester

The Yorkshire College Of Beauty Therapy Leeds

Torquay International School Ltd Torquay

Totton College Southampton

Tower Hamlets College London

Trinity College Bristol Bristol

Trinity College Carmarthen Carmarthen

Trinity Laban London

Trinity School Of Theology Rugby

Truro and Penwith College Truro

Tti School Of English Ltd London

Twin Towers English College London

Uhi Millennium Institute Inverness

United Church Schools Trust Kettering

United International College London

University Campus Suffolk Ipswich

University College Birmingham Birmingham

University College London London

University College Plymouth St Mark & St John Plymouth

University For The Creative Arts Farnham

University Of Aberdeen Aberdeen

University Of Abertay Dundee Dundee

University Of Bath (The Registry) Bath

University Of Bedfordshire Luton

University Of Birmingham Birmingham

University Of Bradford Bradford

University Of Brighton Brighton

University Of Bristol Bristol

University Of Central Lancashire Preston

University Of Chester Chester

University Of Chichester Chichester

University Of Derby Derby

University Of Dundee Dundee

University Of Durham Durham

University Of East Anglia Norwich

University Of East London London

University Of Edinburgh Edinburgh

University Of Essex Colchester

University Of Exeter Exeter

University Of Glamorgan Pontypridd

University Of Glasgow Glasgow

University Of Gloucestershire Cheltenham

University Of Greenwich Greenwich

University Of Hertfordshire Higher Education Corporation Hatfield

University Of Huddersfield Isc Huddersfield

University Of Huddersfield Huddersfield

University Of Hull Hull

University Of Kent Canterbury

University Of Leeds Leeds

University Of Leicester International Study Centre Leicester

University Of Leicester Leicester

University Of Lincoln Lincoln

University Of Liverpool Liverpool

University Of London London

University Of Manchester Manchester

University Of Northumbria At Newcastle Newcastle Upon Tyne

University Of Nottingham Nottingham

University Of Oxford Oxford

University Of Plymouth Plymouth

University Of Portsmouth Portsmouth

University Of Reading Reading

University Of Southampton Southampton

University Of St Andrews St Andrews

University Of Stirling International Study Centre (Isc) Stirling

University Of Stirling Stirling

University Of Strathclyde Glasgow

University Of Sunderland Sunderland

University Of Surrey Isc Guildford

University Of Surrey Guildford

University Of Sussex Isc Brighton

University Of Sussex Brighton

University Of The Arts London London

University Of The West Of England Bristol

University Of The West Of Scotland Paisley

University Of Ulster Coleraine

University Of Wales Institute, Cardiff Cardiff

University Of Wales, Lampeter Lampeter

University Of Wales, Newport Newport

University Of Warwick Coventry

University Of Westminster London

University Of Wolverhampton Wolverhampton

University Of York York

Uxbridge College Uxbridge

Varndean College Brighton

Victoria College Nottingham Nottingham

Vision College Of Theology and Business Studies London

Wakefield College Wakefield

Wales Isc Newport

Walsall College Walsall

Waltham Forest College London

Warminster School Warminster

Warwickshire College Leamington Spa

Washington International Studies Council Oxford

Wessex Academy School Of English Poole

West Buckland School Barnstaple

West Cheshire College Chester

West Dean College - The Edward James Foundation Ltd Chichester

West Nottinghamshire College Mansfield

West Suffolk College Bury St Edmunds

West Thames College Isleworth

Westbourne Academy Bournemouth

Westbourne School Penarth

Westfield House Cambridge

Westminster Academy London

Westminster Kingsway College London

Weston College Weston Super Mare

Westonbirt School Ltd Tetbury

Weymouth College Weymouth

Whitgift School South Croydon

Wigan and Leigh College Wigan

Wiltshire College Chippenham

Wimbledon School Of English London

Winchester College Winchester

Winchester School Of English Winchester

Windlesham House School T/A (The Malden Trust Ltd) Pulborough

Wirral Metropolitan College Cheshire

Woodard Schools Taunton Ltd Taunton

Woodbridge School Woodbridge

Woodhouse Grove School Bradford

Worcester Sixth Form College Worcester

Worthing College Worthing

Wrekin Old Hall Trust Ltd Telford

Writtle Agricultural College Higher Education Corporation Chelmsford

Wycliffe College Stonehouse

Wyggeston and Queen Elizabeth I College Leicester

Wyke Sixth Form College Hull

Yale College Of Wrexham Wrexham

Yeovil College Yeovil

York College York

York St John University York

Ystrad Mynach College Hengoed

Zen School Of Shiatsu Ltd London

Appendix 4: Allocation of student visas by nationality 2005–10

Grand STUDENT VISAS ISSUED - Nationality 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 Total

AFGHANISTAN 67 101 91 99 172 354 884

ALBANIA 290 463 559 240 339 359 2250

ALGERIA 197 254 356 317 296 333 1753

ANDORRA 1 4 4 1 3 2 15

ANGOLA 305 367 415 206 223 233 1749

ANGUILLA 0 0 1 1

ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA 10 22 20 31 10 12 105

ARGENTINA 188 188 219 196 143 142 1076

ARMENIA 141 186 182 93 90 104 796

AUSTRALIA 669 730 859 990 1001 1035 5284

AZERBAIJAN 475 521 610 227 341 432 2606

BAHAMAS 81 89 84 69 75 53 451

BAHRAIN 540 542 593 590 581 643 3489

BANGLADESH 2961 3375 3443 3313 17449 8989 39530

BARBADOS 168 163 135 127 126 112 831

BELARUS 649 188 222 237 135 135 1566

BELIZE 15 17 17 15 14 14 92

BENIN 34 40 27 23 26 22 172

BERMUDA 1 1 2

BHUTAN 15 16 17 9 22 19 98

BOLIVIA 104 139 101 83 68 44 539

BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA 160 126 130 70 64 53 603

BOTSWANA 230 327 410 326 194 230 1717

BRAZIL 4474 3268 3926 4581 3023 2262 21534

BRITISH NATIONAL OVERSEAS 3323 3069 2796 2649 2390 1816 16043

BRITISH OVERSEAS CITIZEN 6 7 4 6 1 1 25

BRUNEI 456 168 183 146 983 1034 2970

BULGARIA 586 714 1 1 1302

BURKINA 19 14 11 20 12 10 86

BURMA (MYANMAR) 324 321 392 334 636 257 2264

BURUNDI 6 8 10 7 9 5 45

CAMBODIA 27 32 42 34 62 41 238

CAMEROON 425 445 561 293 483 665 2872

CANADA 2423 2549 2904 3266 3201 3503 17846

CAPE VERDE 8 3 51 9 0 2 73

CAYMAN ISLANDS 2 0 1 1 4

CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC 1 4 5 4 4 0 18

CHAD 7 8 15 5 6 2 43

CHILE 245 266 350 346 326 348 1881

CHINA 18182 21055 23727 27935 37235 44234 172368

COLOMBIA 2795 3041 4369 5379 4137 3556 23277

COMOROS 5 3 1 0 2 4 15

CONGO 50 65 90 52 28 15 300

COSTA RICA 16 19 26 30 27 25 143

CROATIA 783 210 194 190 159 155 1691

CUBA 43 57 44 39 16 8 207

CYPRUS* 28 18 15 20 23 11 115

DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO 53 54 63 43 37 23 273

DJIBOUTI 7 10 12 3 1 4 37

DOMINICA 33 30 20 16 18 14 131

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 34 34 39 47 23 22 199

EAST TIMOR (TIMOR-LESTE) 2 3 3 8

ECUADOR 228 271 296 325 292 145 1557

EGYPT 440 465 575 498 731 660 3369

EL SALVADOR 20 17 10 10 17 16 90

EQUATORIAL GUINEA 14 11 33 40 1 13 112

ERITREA 13 17 12 3 16 7 68

ETHIOPIA 144 124 132 116 105 80 701

FIJI 17 14 19 14 13 11 88

GABON 34 46 47 22 10 4 163

GAMBIA 449 427 392 477 327 181 2253

GEORGIA* 230 249 327 420 396 218 1840

GHANA 1063 1160 974 833 782 832 5644

GRENADA 40 41 30 40 36 20 207

GUATEMALA 17 16 17 26 15 21 112

GUINEA 83 77 58 44 33 45 340

GUINEA-BISSAU 6 21 15 6 0 1 49

GUYANA 91 86 69 44 38 31 359

HAITI 14 13 11 8 7 4 57

HONDURAS 12 9 13 9 6 14 63

HONG KONG 1981 2269 2476 2785 3532 5317 18360

ICELAND 1 0 2 3

INDIA 16592 20579 22018 27871 58158 42545 187763

INDONESIA 682 629 624 736 708 907 4286

IRAN 1514 1979 2246 2360 1969 2483 12551

IRAQ 172 285 317 326 386 356 1842

ISRAEL 2014 731 330 315 257 208 3855

IVORY COAST 123 145 132 78 71 33 582

JAMAICA 200 165 206 152 129 104 956

JAPAN 8423 8079 6864 5599 4375 3760 37100

JORDAN 818 894 918 822 863 765 5080

KAZAKHSTAN 4906 5614 4187 1415 2020 2121 20263

KENYA 819 983 880 1022 954 916 5574

KIRIBATI 1 1 1 3

KOREA (NORTH) 7 4 3 3 3 2 22

KOSOVO 0 2 75 62 139

KUWAIT 683 700 1005 1101 1074 1130 5693

KYRGYZSTAN 267 342 307 150 177 81 1324

LAOS 13 5 3 7 5 1 34

LEBANON 380 387 324 311 265 370 2037

LESOTHO 8 24 9 8 13 17 79

LIBERIA 8 5 15 10 6 22 66

LIBYA 2318 1213 781 596 2010 2440 9358

LITHUANIA 1 1

MACAU 81 86 102 131 130 165 695

MACEDONIA 84 168 203 175 155 77 862

MADAGASCAR 30 26 25 21 13 15 130

MALAWI 563 337 450 247 185 166 1948

MALAYSIA 4423 3392 3902 4142 6071 6284 28214

MALDIVES 78 94 75 83 51 69 450

MALI 14 27 41 30 24 22 158

MAURITANIA 18 21 29 16 10 9 103

MAURITIUS 1502 1181 927 836 803 733 5982

MEXICO 1211 1117 1261 1455 1065 1068 7177

MICRONESIA 1 1

MOLDOVA 143 153 81 97 97 64 635

MONACO 2 3 2 4 2 3 16

MONGOLIA 164 265 887 297 305 135 2053

MONTENEGRO 1 30 48 48 127

MOROCCO 376 442 347 238 390 490 2283

MOZAMBIQUE 57 27 33 32 28 31 208

NAMIBIA 34 43 32 28 37 30 204

NAURU 0 0 0

NEPAL 405 791 1114 581 10104 2333 15328

NEW ZEALAND 145 135 195 207 184 212 1078

NICARAGUA 3 8 9 9 6 8 43

NIGER 14 17 18 8 5 6 68

NIGERIA 6856 7036 8385 9666 11205 10948 54096

OMAN 1029 1216 1122 874 718 645 5604

PAKISTAN 8639 11517 10426 7960 12657 24485 75684

PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY 81 100 91 3 2 277

PANAMA 26 20 30 52 27 21 176

PAPUA NEW GUINEA 8 5 1 3 11 12 40

PARAGUAY 14 18 25 12 5 4 78

PERU 401 411 425 435 281 214 2167

PHILIPPINES 403 623 1245 5939 7700 3772 19682

QATAR 475 543 739 658 689 895 3999

ROMANIA 775 740 2 3 0 1520

RUSSIA 3341 4868 3832 3800 3123 3160 22124

RWANDA 54 59 69 69 55 58 364

SAN MARINO 1 3 2 1 1 2 10

SAO TOME AND PRINCIPE 51 52 8 7 2 0 120

SAUDI ARABIA 2643 3118 3027 6147 9443 8090 32468

SENEGAL 71 103 164 137 118 116 709

SERBIA 42 25 243 232 542

SEYCHELLES 58 45 28 17 56 54 258

SIERRA LEONE 189 260 218 145 130 108 1050

SINGAPORE 841 766 732 961 1463 1846 6609

SLOVAKIA 0 1 1

SOLOMON ISLANDS 5 2 2 2 2 1 14

SOMALIA 3 3 5 3 3 7 24

SOUTH AFRICA 436 492 477 533 479 495 2912

SOUTH KOREA 8194 7297 6857 6556 5738 6488 41130

SOVIET UNION 1 1

SRI LANKA 1779 2374 2503 3309 5546 7583 23094

ST KITTS AND NEVIS 13 17 14 10 11 12 77

ST LUCIA 96 82 71 73 60 47 429

ST VINCENT 50 63 43 35 46 40 277

Stateless (Art 1 1951 Convention) 34 30 19 14 20 14 131

SUDAN 273 264 264 208 257 188 1454

SURINAM 4 4 3 5 1 1 18

SWAZILAND 28 20 21 13 13 13 108

SYRIA 699 863 611 395 450 395 3413

TAIWAN 9298 9601 6957 4337 3799 3535 37527

TAJIKISTAN 78 76 38 54 39 40 325

TANZANIA 720 887 882 947 582 476 4494

THAILAND 3379 4003 4005 4468 4706 5085 25646

TOGO 14 28 22 14 12 16 106

TONGA 5 3 6 3 4 3 24

TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO 388 432 478 393 376 359 2426

TUNISIA 99 109 131 86 89 57 571

TURKEY 7084 8531 8151 5302 5835 4212 39115

TURKMENISTAN 453 211 176 204 334 212 1590

TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS 1 1

TUVALU 1 0 0 1

UGANDA 569 508 582 619 467 399 3144

UKRAINE 935 1688 935 758 850 839 6005

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES 926 745 550 348 885 913 4367

UNITED NATIONS 1 3 11 8 8 11 42

UNITED STATES 8930 9111 11200 14268 14760 14477 72746

Unspecified Nationality 96 88 221 164 47 39 655

URUGUAY 16 20 28 31 23 22 140

UZBEKISTAN 746 1075 829 465 219 138 3472

VANUATU 0 0 1 1

VENEZUELA 332 469 763 778 433 303 3078

VIETNAM 1389 1452 1833 1862 2059 2719 11314

WESTERN SAMOA 3 0 1 0 1 5

XXB (Refugee 1957 Convention) 5 7 13 29 16 8 78

XXC (Northern Cyprus) 4 8 3 5 20

XXH (Hong Kong SAL) 3 4 5 90 97 80 279

XXP (Palestinian Stateless) 92 102 67 159 195 214 829

YEMEN 234 264 246 287 185 159 1375

YUGOSLAVIA 1425 1080 1147 346 64 5 4067

ZAMBIA 398 433 545 384 252 230 2242

ZIMBABWE 652 461 367 263 222 248 2213

Grand Total 171695 184167 186454 194738 270922 254005 1261981 Table compiled on the basis of Home Office answers to Written Parliamentary Question [40890] and [43770]

Appendix 5: International students who studied in the UK

Heads of state who studied in Britain

Head of State Country

King Hamad ibn Isa Al Khalifa Bahrain

KIng Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck Bhutan

President Ian Khama Botswana

Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah Brunei

Queen Margrethe II Denmark

President Nicholas Liverpool Dominica

President John Atta Mills Ghana

President Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson Iceland

King Abdullah II Jordan

President Anote Tong Kiribati

King Letsie III of Lesotho Lesotho

Henri, Grand Duke of Luxembourg Luxembourg

Yang di-Pertuan Agong Mizan Zainal Abidin of Malaysia Terengganu

President Mohamed Nasheed Maldives

President Anerood Jugnauth Mauritius

Prince Albert II Monaco

King Harald V Norway

Sultan Qaboos bin Said al Said Oman

President Aníbal Cavaco Silva Portugal

Emir Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani Qatar

King Mswati III Swaziland

President Bashar al-Assad Syria

King George Tupou V Tonga

President George Maxwell Richards Trinidad and Tobago

President Abdullah Gül Turkey

President Iolu Abil Vanuatu

President Rupiah Banda Zambia

Indicative list of international alumni who studied in British universities

Alumnus Country of origin

Tariq Ali, author Pakistan

Benazir Bhutto, Pakistani politician Pakistan

Baruch S Blumberg, Nobel Prize-winning scientist United States of America

Justice Stephen Breyer, Associate Justice, Supreme United States of America Court of the United States

General Wesley Clark, NATO Supreme Allied United States of America Commander Europe, 1997-2000

Rupert Murdoch, Director, News International Australia

Cornelia Sorabji, India’s first female lawyer India

Aung San Suu Kyi, Burmese politician Burma

Rabindranath Tagore, Nobel prize-winning author India

Sir Yang Ti-liang, former Chief Justice of Hong Kong China

Jomo Kenyatta , founding father of Kenya British East Africa (Kenya)

Idris Kutigi, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria Nigeria

Johnnie Carson, US Assistant Secretary of State for United States of America African Affairs

Hoshyar Zebari, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Iraq Iraq

Nahed Taher, first woman to head a Saudi Saudi Arabia investment bank (Gulf One Investment Bank)

Professor Jianhua Zhang , scientist ranked in 2008 by China Nature as one of the five agricultural scientists who could ‘change the world’

Dr Barham Salih, Prime Minister of Kurdistan Iraq

Haruhiko Kuroda, President of the Asian Japan Development Bank

Michèle Flournoy, US Under Secretary of Defense United States of America

Dr Fred Goesmann, scientist who worked Germany on Beagle 2 at the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research

Appendix 6: Financial Times Global MBA Ranking Table 2010

Current School name Country rank

1 London Business School U.K.

2 University of Pennsylvania: Wharton U.S.A.

3 Harvard Business School U.S.A.

4 Stanford University GSB U.S.A.

5 Insead France / Singapore

6 Columbia Business School U.S.A.

6 IE Business School Spain

8 MIT Sloan School of Management U.S.A.

9 University of Chicago: Booth U.S.A.

9 Hong Kong UST Business School China

11 Iese Business School Spain

12 Indian School of Business India

13 New York University: Stern U.S.A.

13 Dartmouth College: Tuck U.S.A.

15 IMD Switzerland

16 Yale School of Management U.S.A.

16 University of Oxford: Saïd U.K.

18 HEC Paris France

19 Esade Business School Spain

20 Duke University: Fuqua U.S.A.

21 University of Cambridge: Judge U.K.

22 Ceibs China

22 Northwestern University: Kellogg U.S.A.

24 Lancaster University Management School U.K.

25 Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University Netherlands

26 Cranfield School of Management U.K.

27 Nanyang Business School Singapore

28 Chinese University of Hong Kong China

28 University of Michigan: Ross U.S.A.

28 University of California at Berkeley: Haas U.S.A.

31 University of Virginia: Darden U.S.A.

32 Imperial College Business School U.K.

33 UCLA: Anderson U.S.A.

34 Emory University: Goizueta U.S.A.

34 Carnegie Mellon: Tepper U.S.A.

36 Cornell University: Johnson U.S.A.

36 Australian School of Business: AGSM Australia

38 Georgetown University: McDonough U.S.A.

38 SDA Bocconi Italy

40 Manchester Business School U.K.

41 City University: Cass U.K.

42 Warwick Business School U.K.

43 University of Maryland: Smith U.S.A.

44 Rice University: Jones U.S.A.

45 University of Toronto: Rotman Canada

46 University of North Carolina: Kenan-Flagler U.S.A.

47 Boston College: Carroll U.S.A.

48 University of Rochester: Simon U.S.A.

49 University of Western Ontario: Ivey Canada

49 Washington University: Olin U.S.A.

97 Undergraduate Undergraduate study - Proportion of students from Non-EU countries Postgraduate Postgraduate study - Proportion of students from Non-EU countries Other European European Other Union 195 475 24% 4% nal Students at UK Universities ,027,085 117,660 26% 6% United Kingdom Non European Union ons by region of domicile, 2008/09 1,075 9,700 420 25% 5% Proportion of Proportion of students from Non-EU countries 5.8% 5906.2% 1,235 8,760 17,2501.6% 130 855 15% 1,3506.9% 1,685 7,9451.1% 25 4% 16% 22, 85 1% 2,175 5% 0 2% 3% 0%

Appendix 7: Number of Internatio Students at UK higher education instituti Institution 251,310Total 10.5% 2 Aberystwyth University University Anglia Ruskin Aston UniversityBangor University Bath Spa University 23.6% Birkbeck College 9.6% University Birmingham City Bishop Grosseteste University 2,480 College Lincoln 4.4% 7,385 800 630 16,675 47% 810 15% 8% 4% 98 425 1,730 31% 7% 205 160 38% 8% 3,485 23,345 2,855 1,110 15,995 30% 1,270 6% 42% 7% 3% 1,345 2,700 1,275 25% - 0% 1,260 16,000 710 33% 3% 1% 1,270 19,220 420 20% 3% 7.0% 6652.8% 475 8,1659.4% 80 15,47010.0% 115 630 28% 805 720 4% 870 5% 55 2% 19% 170 11% 4% 10% 11.0% 1,495 10, t 11.9% 185 1,

Bournemouth UniversityBrunel University 7. New Buckinghamshire University Church Canterbury Christ 18.1% University Cardiff University of Speech and Central School Drama 2,725DanceConservatoire for and 12.5% Drama Institute of ArtCourtauld 11,570Coventry University 20.2% Cranfield University 790 De Montfort University 14.2% 85Edge Hill University 25. 6. of Ar College Edinburgh 42% Napier University Edinburgh 0.3% 280 9% 85 55 24,125 31% 130 3% 0% 0% 99 435 410 36% 3% 2,815 21,495 1,480 25% 6% 3% 715 6,260 680 19% 6% 9.6% 74011.3% 85 5,0302.7% 12021.6% 2,250 490 1,960 4,25524.8% 3,505 7,025 175 42% 20% 65 8,765 29% 1,150 5% 6% 1,880 2% 33% 24% 12% 25% 8.5% 1,565 16, 4.7% 1,320 25,790 685 19% 2% r University ŵ

University Glasgow Caledonian Glasgow School of ArtGlynd 17.6% Goldsmiths College and Music of School Guildhall Drama 310Harper Adams University 9. College Heriot-Watt University Heythrop College 1,265 of Science, Imperial College Medicine and Technology 7.3% Institute of Education 190 King's College London 11.4% Kingston University 65 13.5% of MusicLeeds College 30%Leeds Metropolitan University 825 10.9% 2.9% 3,015 790 15% 5,950 20 17,405 40 480 1,855 645 10% 12% 21% 15 5% 6% 9% 13% 2% 100 0 640 38% 7% 050 1,090 17% 5% 9% 1,010 490 275 1% 2,430 57%7% 3,350 13,06 - 16,540 1,455 39% 9% 2.8% 959.2% 2,385 3,31013.3% 3,520 22,900 40 49.6% 4,745 5%39.1% 465 20,570 715 23% 3,025 2% 2,290 600 6% 1,805 27%0.8% 10 125 39% 57%11.3% 2,04510.3% 520 9% 1,290 - 15,060 41% 4,165 20 4% 1,060 360 22% 19% 0% 7% 9% 7.8% 1,865 21, ty 4.7% 325 6,435 185 17% 2%

Leeds Trinity University College Universi Liverpool Hope Moores Liverpool John University School Business London Metropolitan London University 56. of Economics School London Science and Political of Hygiene and School London Medicine Tropical Bank University South London UniversityLoughborough Middlesex University 15. Newman University College 0.0% College of Norwich University 15. the Arts University Oxford Brookes Queen Margaret University, 0 Edinburgh 2,730 45 0% 0% 101 16.2% 2,2707.2% 85 10,890 1,045 860 31% 45 29% 12% 19.1% 1,670 7% 15.5% 115 6,17010.8% 3,650 575 920 4.8% 210 33% 29,550 50 33% 16% 4,120 630 28% 9% 85 16% 5% 4% ty 8.8% 1,030 9,930 790 36% 7% llege 3.7% 30 720 60 23% 1% College of College spital Medical

Queen Mary and Westfield College Ravensbourne Design and Communication Roehampton UniversityCollegeRose Bruford 6.5% Royal Academy of Music 6.7% CollegeRoyal Agricultural 25.2% of ArtRoyal College 575 10.3% of MusicRoyal College 65 180 and Bedford Royal Holloway 15.6% New College 100 21.9% 8,045 of Royal Northern College Music 155Scottish Agricultural Co 845 405 140 840Sheffield Hallam University 290 Southampton Solent Universi 600 60 130 St George's Ho School 365 30 16% 240 25% 22% 135 3% 31% 16% 25% 6% 29% 5% - 17% 102 1,400 12,285 335 29% 7% 1,710 24,675 590 18% 5% 0% 3,485 16,385 1,855 29% 10% 0.7% 309.2% 1,570 3,8754.7% 275 15,040 265 1% 5,405 385 32%9.4% 1,6105.4% 125 190 1% 6% 14,260 3% 10.5% 30 2,07514.7% 135 1,240 4% 5.5% 1,890 230 95 25%7.6% 1,905 745 23% 31,335 25 5% 22,450 11% 40 8% 1,105 6% 550 23% - 11% 16% 4% 4%

St Mary's University College 0.0% St Mary's University College, Twickenham Staffordshire University Stranmillis University College 0 0.0% Swansea Metropolitan University Swansea University 0Teesside University 965Thames Valley University 10.0% The Arts University College at 6.3% Bournemouth 25 1,245The City UniversityThe Institute of Cancer Research Institute for The Liverpool 16. 35 Performing Arts 0%The Manchester Metropolitan University The Nottingham Trent University 0% 0% 0% 103 695 915 41% 3% 1% 115 193,585 130 1% 0% 5.5% 1,24514.8% 2,01513.1% 100 20,365 10, 28.7% 1,405 1,205 615 2,765 12%18.3% 2,450 50 31% 720 36% 3% 9,690 8% 24% 1,235 30% 13% m 14.7% 4,295 23,640 1,255 28% 7% ge 6.5% 130 1,785 90 8% 6% rd 18.2% 2,315 9,440 985 39% 11% gham 51.9% 550 430 80 45% 54% een 13.4% 1,995 11,460on 1,405 5.4% 1,125 34% 18,485 1,365 6% 12% 4% l 13.7% 2,875 17,025 1,100 30% 7%

The Open UniversityThe Queen's University of Belfast 0. The Robert Gordon University The Royal Scottish Academy of Drama Music and The Royal Veterinary Colle Oriental and of The School African Studies PharmacyThe School of The University of Aberd 15.1% The University of Bath The University of Birmingha 210The University of BoltonThe University of Bradfo 6.1% The University of Bright 1,135The University of Bristo 495The University of Buckin 50 7,475 17% 200 14% 13% 5% 104 205 580 11% 2% 590 1,010 32% 8% 9.4% 2,650 24,760 720 20%14.2% 2,305 8% 8.1% 1,965 13,150 21,06010.0% 2,235 735 27% 1,2209.8% 1,795 19,300 9% 25% 15,285 835 34% 1,215 3% 6% 23% 8% 15.5% 3,535 17,385n 14.1% 1,895 3,715 32% 21, 8% 17.7% 4,635 20,565 920 49% 9% eld 3.7% 805 20, lia 11.9% 1,825 12,875 590 27% 8% gh 13.8% 3,390 19,035 2,095 26% 9% e 1,265 8.1% 13,545 715 18% 3% x 18.0% 2,210 9,025 1,065 36% 13% The University of Cambridge The University of Central Lancashire The University of Chichester 1.5% The University of Dunde The University of East Ang The University of East Londo 75The University of Edinbur The University of Esse The University of Exeter 4,875The University of Glasgow The University of Greenwich 60 The University of Huddersfi The University of Hull The University of Keele 1%The University of Kent 7.2% 2% 750 9,335 285 17% 5% 105 025 1,755 40% 11% 13.9% 4,510 26,680 1,18015.7% 3,0657.6% 965 38%15.1% 4,875 15,575 11,51517.4% 4,140 935 26,640 5% 34% 200 25% 17,740 775 34% 9% 4% 1,885 10% 40% 6% r 17.9% 6,845 29,390 1,955 33% 12% h 9.7% 2,080 18,275 1,025 24% 6% m 18.7% 6,145 25, l 10.5% 2,090 17,175 685 29% 7% r 13.8% 2,280 13,445 780 23% 8% g 12.7% 2,025 12,945 990 26% 7% d 11.9% 2,385 16,660 1,050 36% 5% ster 13.9% 1,770 9,990 935 30% 8%

The University of Lanca The University of Leeds The University of Leiceste The University of LincolnThe University of Liverpoo 2.1% The University of Mancheste The University of Newcastle- upon-Tyne 245The University of Northampton The University of Northumbria at Newcastle The University of Nottingha 10,580The University of Oxford The University of Plymouth 640 The University of Portsmout 3.7% The University of Readin The University of Salfor 11% 1,130 1% 28,910 890 9% 3% 106

13.2% 3,000 18,385 1,30015.9% 2,5103.1% 555 31% 11,52016.7% 1,0306.0% 540 16,970 7% 1,725 4,725 370 8,390 17% 32% 400 48% 135 25% 2% 7% 8% 1% r 14.4% 3,335 17,740 2,085 28% 9% nd 15.6% 3,120 16,200 715 41% 11% d 17.0% 4,200 19,425yde 8.8% 1,875 1,090 18,855 40% 570 8% 17% 5% ews 29.4% 2,725 5,545 1,005 46%k 17.6% 5,005ster 2.9% 25% 21,350 170 2,085 5,660 30% 75 12% 3% 3% g 12.4% 1,255 8,370 500 37% 4% x 1,205 9.7% 10,270 890 27% 5% The University of Sheffiel The University of Southampton The University of St Andr The University of Stirlin The University of Strathcl The University of Sunderla The University of Surrey The University of Susse The University of the West Scotland The University of Wales, Lampeter The University of Wales, Newport The University of Warwic The University of Westminste The University of Winche 107 085 2,385 24% 21% 8.7% 1,88515.7% 2,120 18,6457.9% 70 10,660 1,2401.8% 135 685 710 25% 34% 7,425 130 15%22.3% 4,740 5% 8% 2.3% 95 105 6% 5% 14, 3,950 1% 35 2% 3% am 16.6% 715 3,285 295 68% 10% Arts 4.9% 260 4,640 385 30% 4% lk 1.4% 65 4,575 25 2% 1% re 20.6% 3,555 12,115 1,610 58% 9% undee 8.3% 335 3,135 580 53% 2%

The University of Wolverhampton The University of Worcester 1.6% The University of York Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Dance Music and Trinity University College 135 Institute UHI Millennium 1.5% University Campus Suffo Birmingh University College 7,960 35University College Falmouth 3.1% London University College 225 Plymouth St University College Mark and St John 2,265University for the Creative 95University of Abertay D 2%University of Bedfordshi 45 University of Chester 2,830 1% 1.4% 6% 100 195 1% 5% 13,105 3% 190 4% 1% 108 2% 2,730 13,395 720 37% 6% 10.0% 2,085 17,02022.6% 95 1,8005.2% 1,635 265 27%21.5% 2,375 28,935 60 23% 8,415 7% 1,070 - 255 11% 59% 4% 8% on 24.8% 3,915 10,065 1,835 31% 23% ire 4.5% 420 8,605 230 8% 3% e 15.0% 3,780 20,795 545 33% 10% ty 1.3% 85 6,370 75 4% 1%

University of CumbriaUniversity of Derby 0.4% University of DurhamUniversity of Glamorgan 5.1% 16. University of Gloucestersh 50University of Hertfordshir 875 University of London (Institutes and activities) University of the Arts, Lond 12,785University of the West 15,385 Bristol England, University of Ulster 270 University of Wales Institute, Cardiff 775 Writtle College 2.5% 1%Universi York St John Source: Higher Education Statistics Authority student record 10% 575 5.0% 0% 4% 50 20,160 2,420 920 7% 30 1% - 5% 109

Formal Minutes

Tuesday 15 March 2011

Members present:

Rt Hon Keith Vaz, in the Chair

Nicola Blackwood Steve McCabe Michael Ellis Rt Hon Alun Michael Dr Julian Huppert Bridget Phillipson Lorraine Fullbrook Mr David Winnick

Paragraphs 1 and 2 read and agreed to.

Paragraphs 3 to 9 read, amended and agreed to.

Paragraph 10 read and agreed to.

Paragraphs 11 to 13 read, amended and agreed to.

Paragraph 14 read and agreed to.

Paragraphs 15 to 17 read, amended and agreed to.

Paragraphs 18 and 19 read and agreed to.

Paragraph 20 read, amended and agreed to.

Paragraphs 21 to 78 read and postponed.

Paragraphs 79 to 82 (now paragraphs 21 to 24) read and agreed to.

Postponed Paragraph 21 (now paragraph 25) again read, amended and agreed to.

Postponed Paragraph 22 (now paragraph 26) read and agreed to.

Postponed Paragraphs 23 to 25 (now paragraphs 27 to 29) read, amended and agreed to.

A paragraph— (Rt Hon Alun Michael)—brought up, read the first and second time and inserted (now paragraph 30).

Another paragraph— (The Chair) — brought up, read the first and second time and inserted (now paragraph 31).

Postponed Paragraphs 26 to 28 (now paragraphs 32 to 34) read, amended and agreed to.

Another paragraph—(Nicola Blackwood)—brought up, read the first and second time and inserted (now paragraph 35).

Postponed Paragraph 29 (now paragraph 36) read and agreed to.

Postponed Paragraph 30 (now paragraph 37) read, amended and agreed to.

Postponed Paragraphs 31 and 32 (now paragraphs 38 and 39) read and agreed to.

110

Postponed Paragraph 33 (now paragraph 40) read.

Amendment proposed, in line 4, to leave out the first sentence.—(Nicola Blackwood).

Question put, That the amendment be made.

The Committee divided.

Ayes, 3 Noes, 4

Nicola Blackwood Steve McCabe

Michael Ellis Rt Hon Alun Michael

Lorraine Fullbrook Bridget Phillipson

Mr David Winnick

The Amendment negatived.

Other amendments made.

Paragraph, as amended, agreed to.

Postponed Paragraphs 34 to 40 (now paragraphs 41 to 47) read, amended and agreed to.

Postponed Paragraph 41 (now paragraph 48) read.

Amendment proposed, in line 9, leave out from “desire.” to end of paragraph and insert: “We would recommend that if the UKBA is satisfied that the person has genuinely studied here, with all the supporting evidence from the college, etc, and the amount of time spent in studying here is not considered unreasonable, the application for extending the stay should be decided in this country. If, however, this is not so, applications for further courses should be made overseas.” —(Mr David Winnick)

Question put, That the Amendment be made.

The Committee divided.

Ayes, 1 Noes, 3

Mr David Winnick Nicola Blackwood

Michael Ellis

Lorraine Fullbrook

The Amendment negatived.

Other amendments made.

Paragraph, as amended, agreed to.

Postponed Paragraph 42 (now paragraph 49) read, amended and agreed to.

Postponed Paragraphs 43 to 49 (now paragraphs 50 to 56) read and agreed to.

111

Postponed Paragraph 50 (now paragraph 57) read, amended and agreed to.

Postponed Paragraph 51 (now paragraph 58) read and amended.

Amendment proposed, in line 19, to leave out from start of line to “either” and insert” We would ideally suggest that the system be maintained, in the light of the use of post-study work options to attract the best students by our main competitors in the higher education sector. However, if it is to be reformed, we recommend that the Government”.—(Dr Julian Huppert)

Question put, That the amendment be made.

The Committee divided.

Ayes, 5 Noes, 3

Dr Julian Huppert Nicola Blackwood

Steve McCabe Michael Ellis

Rt Hon Alun Michael Lorraine Fullbrook

Bridget Phillipson

Mr David Winnick

The Amendment made.

Other amendments made.

Paragraph, as amended, agreed to.

Postponed Paragraph 52 (now paragraph 59) read, amended and agreed to.

Postponed Paragraph 53 (now paragraph 60) read and agreed to.

Postponed Paragraph 54 read, divided, amended and agreed to (now paragraphs 61 and 62).

Postponed Paragraphs 55 to 57 (now paragraphs 63 to 65) read, amended and agreed to.

Postponed Paragraphs 58 to 60 (now paragraphs 66 to 68) read and agreed to.

Postponed Paragraph 61(now paragraph 69) read, amended and agreed to.

Postponed Paragraph 62 (now paragraph 70) read and agreed to.

Postponed Paragraph 63 (now paragraph 71) read.

Amendment proposed, in line 19, after “implemented” to add “although it would be better to delay implementation until the situation has been researched more carefully and more robust proposals subjected to proper scrutiny.”—(Rt Hon Alun Michael)

Question put, That the amendment be made.

112

The Committee divided.

Ayes, 4 Noes, 3

Steve McCabe Nicola Blackwood

Rt Hon Alun Michael Michael Ellis

Bridget Phillipson Lorraine Fullbrook

Mr David Winnick

The Amendment made.

Paragraph, as amended, agreed to.

Postponed Paragraph 64 (now paragraph 72) read and agreed to.

Postponed Paragraph 65 (now paragraph 73) read, amended and agreed to.

Postponed Paragraph 66 (now paragraph 74) read and agreed to.

Postponed Paragraphs 67 and 68 (now paragraphs 75 and 76) read, amended and agreed to.

Postponed Paragraph 69 (now paragraph 77) read and agreed to.

Postponed Paragraph 70 read, divided, amended and agreed to (now paragraphs 78 and 79).

Postponed Paragraphs 71 to 77 (now paragraphs 80 to 86) read and agreed to.

Postponed Paragraph 78 read, divided, amended and agreed to (now paragraphs 87 and 88).

Paragraphs 83 to 85 (now paragraphs 89 to 91) read and agreed to.

Paragraphs 86 to 88 (now paragraphs 92 to 94) read, amended and agreed to.

Paragraphs 89 to 93 (now paragraphs 95 to 99) read and agreed to.

Paragraphs 94 and 95 (now paragraphs 100 and 101) read, amended and agreed to.

Resolved, That the title of the Report be changed as follows, Student Visas.— (The Chair.)

Resolved, That the Report, as amended, be the Seventh Report of the Committee to the House.

Ordered, That the Chair make the Report to the House.

Ordered, That embargoed copies of the Report be made available, in accordance with the provisions of Standing Order No. 134.

Several papers were ordered to be appended to the Report.

[Adjourned till Tuesday 22 March at 11.15 am

113

Witnesses

Tuesday 1 February 2011 Page

Tony Millns, English UK and Elizabeth McLaren, British Council Ev 1

Professor Steve Smith, Universities UK and Professor Edward Action, University of East Anglia Ev 7

Professor David Wark FRS, Imperial College London/Rutherford Appleton Laboratory and Mr Simeon Underwood, London School of Economics Ev 12

Tuesday 8 February 2011

Martin Doel and John Mountford, Association of Colleges Ev 18

Dominic Scott, UKCISA and Aaron Porter, NUS Ev 24

Sir Andrew Green KCMG and Mr Alper Mehmet, MigrationWatch UK Ev 31

Damian Green MP, Minister of State for Immigration, Glyn Williams, Director of Immigration Policy and Jeremy Oppenheim, Regional Director, National Lead Temporary Migration, Home Office Ev 35

Thursday 3 March 2011

Rt Hon David Willetts MP, Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills Ev 45

Jeremy Browne MP, Minister of State, Fiona Clouder, Acting Director Migration and Andrew Whyte, Director of Communication, Foreign and Commonwealth Office Ev 51

List of printed written evidence

1 MigrationWatch UK (SV3 and SV3a) Ev 60: 80 2 Head of International Student Support, Imperial College London (SV14) Ev 62 3 Association of Colleges (SV16 and SV16a) Ev 63: 64 4 English UK (SV17 and SV17a) Ev 65: 67 5 Universities UK (SV28 and SV28a) Ev 67: 77 6 UK Council for International Student Affairs (SV29) Ev 72 7 National Union of Students (SV50) Ev 78

114

List of additional written evidence

(published in Volume II on the Committee’s website www.parliament.uk/homeaffairscom)

1 St Clare’s, Oxford (SV1) Ev w1 2 Mr Rhodri Llewellyn (SV2) Ev w2 3 University for the Creative Arts (SV4) Ev w4 4 University of Huddersfield (SV5) Ev w5 5 Nazarene Theological College (SV6) Ev w7 6 Queensland College London (SV7) Ev w9 7 London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (SV8) Ev w10 8 University of Sheffield Students’ Union (SV9) Ev w12 9 Tilsley College, Motherwell (SV10) Ev w15 10 International Students of Forth Valley College, Falkirk (SV11) Ev w18 11 The Northern Consortium (SV12) Ev w18 12 Study Group UK (SV13) Ev w21 13 Flying Time Aviation (SV15) Ev w22 14 University of Warwick (SV18) Ev w23 15 University of Cambridge ESOL Examinations (SV19) Ev w26 16 Cambridge University Students’ Union (SV20) Ev w28 17 London School of Business and Finance (SV22) Ev w30 18 Association of Business Executives (SV23) Ev w33 19 University of Manchester Students’ Union (SV24) Ev w36 20 Student Welfare Officer, Middlesex Academy of Business and Management (SV25) Ev w40 21 Association of Independent Higher Education Providers (SV26) Ev w41 22 INTO University Partnerships (SV27) Ev w42 23 Institute of Administrative Management (SV30) Ev w46 24 NHS Employers (SV32) Ev w46 25 Immigration Law Practitioners’ Association (SV33) Ev w48 26 Aldwych Group (SV34) Ev w51 27 Migrant’s Rights Network (SV35) Ev w54 28 Navitas (UK) (SV36) Ev w57 29 University of Exeter Students’ Guild (SV37) Ev w61 30 Kaplan International Colleges (SV38) Ev w64 31 Goldsmiths Students’ Union (SV39) Ev w66 32 British Accreditation Council for Independent Further and Higher Education (SV40) Ev w67 33 University College London Union (SV41) Ev w71 34 University of Sheffield (SV42) Ev w74 35 Cancer Research UK (SV43) Ev w75 36 London School of Commerce (SV44) Ev w77 37 Professor Edward Acton, Chair of the Universities UK Working Group (SV45) Ev w79 38 1994 Group (SV46) Ev w84 39 University of Oxford (SV21) Ev w86

115

40 University of East Anglia (SV47) Ev w89 41 Newcastle University Students’ Union (SV48) Ev w91 42 Association of MBAs (SV49) Ev w93 43 Russell International Excellence Group (SV51) Ev w94 44 Cambridge Education Group (SV52) Ev w98 45 British Medical Association (SV53) Ev w102 46 Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants (SV54) Ev w104 47 Pearson’s Language Testing Division (SV55) Ev w107 48 Edexcel (SV55a) Ev w109 49 Oxford University Student Union (SV56) Ev w111 50 million+ (SV57) Ev w114 51 University of Sunderland (SV58) Ev w115 52 Cardiff University (SV59) Ev w117 53 Business, Innovation and Skills Committee (SV60) Ev w118 54 BioIndustry Association (SV61) Ev w118

116

List of Reports from the Committee during the current Parliament

The reference number of the Government’s response to each Report is printed in brackets after the HC printing number.

Session 2010–11 First Report Immigration Cap HC 361 Second Report Policing: Police and Crime Commissioners HC 511 Third Report Firearms Control HC 447 Fourth Report The work of the UK Border Agency HC 587 Fifth Report Police use of Tasers HC 646 Sixth Report Police Finances HC 695

Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 1

Oral evidence

Taken before the Home Affairs Committee on Tuesday 1 February 2011

Members present: Keith Vaz (Chair)

Nicola Blackwood Alun Michael Mr James Clappison Bridget Phillipson Lorraine Fullbrook Mark Reckless Dr Julian Huppert Mr David Winnick Steve McCabe ______

Examination of Witnesses

Witnesses: Tony Millns, Chief Executive, English UK, and Elizabeth McLaren, British Council, gave evidence.

Q1 Chair: Could I ask Mr Millns and Ms McLaren students who come to this country ought to be to come to the dais, please? Good morning, ladies and reduced? gentlemen. This is the first session of the Select Tony Millns: Only as an incidental consequence of Committee’s inquiry into student visas, in particular tackling any abuse that there is in the system, not as the impact of the proposed restrictions on Tier 4 a policy objective in itself. The reason for that is that migration. I welcome to the dais our witnesses: Tony we feel that the objective of reducing net migration in Millns, the Chief Executive of English UK, and respect of students is pretty meaningless. Whether a Elizabeth McLaren from the British Council. Could I student comes into the country for 11 months and ask all Members to declare any special interest that departs or stays for 14 months on a Masters course or they have in any of these sectors? The rest of the three years on a PhD course and then departs seems Members’ interests are declared in the Register of to us to be immaterial in the context of overall Members’ Financial Interests. immigration statistics. Dr Huppert: If I could just declare for the record that Elizabeth McLaren: The British Council supports the I am a member of the University of Cambridge. Government’s commitment to an effective Chair: Mr Millns, will you describe briefly your role immigration policy that avoids abuse of the student in English UK and what your organisation seeks to visa system, but we do not support the wholesale do? reduction of student migration for the purpose of Tony Millns: I am Chief Executive of English UK, numerical context. responsible for the general management of the association. I have been in post for 11 years. English Q5 Chair: I am sure you have both seen the Select UK is a professional and trade association of 450 Committee’s report published last year into bogus accredited English language centres, which range colleges. Is there agreement between the two of you from centres in universities like Edinburgh through to that tackling the abuse of bogus colleges is very private colleges and independent schools like important, and do you both believe that if this was Millfield. The 450 members are all accredited under done it would only be an issue of genuine students the accreditation scheme that we run in partnership coming into this country? with the British Council, which currently accredits Tony Millns: Well, broadly, yes, Chairman. If you 535. recall, I did give evidence to your Committee in that inquiry. It is important to point out just how much has Q2 Chair: Basically, you deal with the English been done and was already in train on tackling bogus language sector? colleges. The previous Register of Education and Tony Millns: We do, yes. Training Providers then maintained by the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills had nearly Q3 Chair: Ms McLaren? 4,500 colleges on it. The new Border Agency Register Elizabeth McLaren: Hello, I am Elizabeth McLaren. of Sponsors has currently, I believe, some 2,292 I am the Manager of Accreditation UK at the British colleges on the register for Tier 4 purposes. Therefore, Council. The British Council, as you know, is the the number of colleges able to bring in students has UK’s international cultural relations organisation, and been halved in two to three years. We entirely support our role in the Accreditation UK Scheme is the quality that, partly from the point of view of improving the assurance of English language teaching organisations UK’s reputation for quality in education and partly for here in the UK for the benefit of international tackling abuse in the system. students. Q6 Chair: One of the criticisms of the last Q4 Chair: Do you agree with the Home Secretary Committee was that the previous Government had not and the Government’s views that the number of done enough to tackle bogus colleges. Ev 2 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

1 February 2011 Tony Millns and Elizabeth McLaren

Tony Millns: Yes, and indeed—how shall I put this you think your members would be prepared to make politely—it left it rather late in the day to do so. David a contribution if the inspection regime was better? Blunkett, as Home Secretary, announced new Tony Millns: I do not think that it would cost more measures in July 2004. It took at least three years for money to tighten up the inspection and accreditation anything substantive to happen. regime. However, it would certainly become high stakes and any college that had accreditation Q7 Chair: But it seems that in the last few months withdrawn would probably reach for the lawyers and the number of bogus colleges has actually increased. go for judicial review against the accrediting body. So Tony Millns: I doubt that, Chairman. However, there there is likely to be a legal cost of tightening up the are signs that there is still some abuse in the system system. That does not mean that I oppose it. I would and that accreditation procedures should certainly be welcome it. tightened up. As I put in my note to the Committee, Chair: Ms McLaren, please feel free to chip in there are signs that a centre can get accreditation whenever appropriate. withdrawn by one accrediting body and simply trot across the street, metaphorically, and get accreditation Q14 Lorraine Fullbrook: Can you tell the from another body. That indicates that standards are Committee what representations you have made to the not consistent. Government to make the accreditation bodies, as you say, better or of a higher quality? Q8 Chair: We will be coming on to the problems of Elizabeth McLaren: We have been working with the the current system in a moment with Ms Blackwood. Border Agency since before the inception of the Can you just give me some figures? The number of current Tier 4 system, with other accrediting bodies, students that you cover, roughly? to look at standardisation and so on, and the British Tony Millns: English UK member centres bring in Council has been answering the consultation roughly 400,000 students a year out of the roughly documents that have been put forward recently. 600,000 who come to study English each year. Q15 Lorraine Fullbrook: Have these Q9 Chair: Benefit to the economy: do we have any representations been fruitful? figures on that? Tony Millns: The Border Agency is now conscious Tony Millns: Very roughly, £1.5 billion a year. that there is a problem with accreditation and that is why there is the proposal in the current consultation, rather vaguely, to do something about it. Quite what Q10 Chair: Jobs? is not clear. They have previously considered trying Tony Millns: Around 30,000 at least. to give the whole business of accreditation to Ofsted, but our understanding is that Ofsted has resisted that, Q11 Nicola Blackwood: English language schools in does not see it as a priority or a job for Ofsted. There my constituency have expressed a number of concerns is, I suppose, also the possibility that it could be given about the accreditation system: that it is allowing to the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher bogus colleges through in the first place. Could you Education, which is increasingly looking at franchised explain the problems that you have observed with the degree courses in private colleges. accreditation system as it stands? Tony Millns: The main one is the one that I alluded Q16 Mark Reckless: Is there any danger that a to a moment ago, which is that the Border Agency smaller number of accrediting bodies could act to has approved a number of accrediting bodies for the exclude new models of delivering courses or purposes of the register and Tier 4. We do not believe competition? that the standards of some of the other bodies are as Tony Millns: I do not think so. We have generally high and as established as our scheme, which has been been quite flexible with accreditation. The scheme has running for nearly 30 years. We have observed that developed markedly over the 30 years or so and I colleges that have had accreditation withdrawn, i.e. think we are well cognisant of the fact that many they have failed the quality test under, say, the British colleges now do blended learning with an online Accreditation Council Scheme, have subsequently got component before the course and online reinforcement accreditation from another body and, thereby, have and practice after the course. So, I do not think we are remained on the register. That is clearly a loophole, in closed to new models of delivery. our view. Q17 Nicola Blackwood: Ms McLaren, what Q12 Nicola Blackwood: How would you guidance do you currently get on acceptable levels of recommend closing those loopholes? standardisation for accreditation? Tony Millns: Either to reform the accreditation system Elizabeth McLaren: The standards and consistency and have one or at most two accrediting bodies or meetings that were held in the early days of Tier 4 the Border Agency is certainly considering whether it have lapsed relatively recently with the pulling out of could make some interim move so that as soon as a Ofsted from the monitoring process. So there is not a college loses accreditation from any accrediting body lot of guidance at the moment for the accrediting it is withdrawn from the register. bodies, although, of course, we all had to go through an assessment process before we were approved and Q13 Chair: If that system was tightened up and it our systems have only continued to develop since cost more money in order to tighten up the system, do then. We regularly report on the number of Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 3

1 February 2011 Tony Millns and Elizabeth McLaren accreditation inspections that we conduct and the pass proposing a range of changes? Which particular areas and fail rates for those and we have no indication that of that consultation paper concern you either as good there is concern about those rates. things or bad things? Tony Millns: There are two. The ﬁrst is a difﬁcult Q18 Nicola Blackwood: Are you required to report? area to address because the statistics are complex, but Are all bodies required to report? it is the objective of reducing net migration. Some Elizabeth McLaren: We are currently voluntarily very interesting work has been done by the Migration reporting. This is my understanding. Advisory Committee, by the Institute for Public Policy Research, and by Professor Acton, who is Q19 Nicola Blackwood: You have written guidance, giving evidence subsequently. I assume, that you interpret? In fact, it appears that if you crunch all of the Elizabeth McLaren: We have our own inspection statistics, for the Government to be sure of hitting the criteria, which were overseen by Ofsted in the early net migration target that it has set—it is not actually stages and have, therefore, been approved by the in the Coalition Agreement, which talks about cutting Border Agency. economic migration for work and talks about limiting Tony Millns: The accrediting bodies were approved abuse; it does not talk about cutting net migration—it for an initial term, I believe, of two years. That would need to cut the student route to zero. In other approval has lapsed and, technically, none of the words, no international students would be able to accrediting bodies, I believe, is currently actually come into the country at all and even that might not approved by the Border Agency. be quite enough. Chair: When did that happen? There are several reasons but the basic measure is the Elizabeth McLaren: Part way through 2009 . International Passenger Survey, which surveys about one in 500 people entering the country and leaving Q20 Chair: Are you telling this Committee that those the country. It asks them the purpose for which they who are now doing accreditation are doing so without are entering the country and the purpose for which proper authority? they are leaving the country. On entry they probably Tony Millns: Yes. say, “I am coming to study”; on exit they probably say, “I am going home for a job”, or something like Q21 Chair: Does the Government know this? that. Therefore, the numbers of students entering and Tony Millns: Yes. leaving do not correlate.

Q22 Chair: What have they done about this? Q25 Chair: It is the use of the word “migrant”, Tony Millns: Nothing, in fact. isn’t it? Chair: Excellent. Tony Millns: It is indeed. We would really wish to see students taken out of the migration statistics Q23 Dr Huppert: Just before we move on from completely, and even Migration Watch, I believe, accreditation and that rather interesting piece of news, agrees broadly. I have heard stories about checks by accreditation Chair: They are coming next week so we will find bodies occasionally being at very unusual times—just out. before Christmas—and asking for what seems a rather Tony Millns: Oh, good. surprising piece of information like title deeds to prove land ownership. Are you comfortable that the Q26 Dr Huppert: A second issue was raised, but can process of accreditation, previous comments aside, I just check that what you are saying is there is a would actually stand up if there was more legal fundamental problem with the questions that are being involvement in checking the process? asked, which means that while we may believe that Elizabeth McLaren: Yes. We are very confident in there are many more students coming in than going our accreditation scheme. We check not for deeds of out, that is not in fact true? land but that the organisation has appropriate planning Tony Millns: Exactly so. But even the prior step, the permission to be operating an educational institution fact that the questions are being asked at all: is the in the buildings that they are in and, of course, our objective of reducing net migration the correct one in inspectors are checking on health and safety matters terms of immigration control? Probably not. Can it as well. That is one of the ways that we can tell the be achieved? Almost certainly not, from the statistics. difference between whether it is a quality organisation Would we even know if it had been? No, from the or a bogus institution. We are reporting on those statistics. regularly in our reports, but obviously the most important thing is the quality assurance of the Q27 Dr Huppert: Your second point? education provision and the welfare of the students. Tony Millns: My second point is that the major area Tony Millns: We do certainly check things such as that concerns us and the universities is the proposal to whether an institution has D1 planning permission for increase the level of English to B2 on the Common use as educational premises, which in places like European Framework of Reference. The CEFR, just Oxford and Cambridge is a very salient factor. It is to explain, is a way of grading competence in difficult to get. language. It has only six bands to describe moving from absolute beginner to native speaker competence. Q24 Dr Huppert: Indeed. Can I move on, then, to B2 is, very broadly, a high grade A level on to, the Government’s consultation paper, which is perhaps, first year of a degree course. So it is a very Ev 4 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

1 February 2011 Tony Millns and Elizabeth McLaren high degree of competence in language. Currently, of Q31 Chair: Our last report on the cap actually has students coming in on university pathway all this information. programmes—international foundation year as they Tony Millns: Exactly. The problem with the statistics are normally called—around 70% to 80% come in is that you cannot be sure when you have reached the with a much lower level of English than that. 97% of 88,000 because of the numbers in and out problem them go on to university courses. that I referred to.

Q28 Dr Huppert: “Much lower” means roughly Q32 Mark Reckless: Don’t these, as you describe what sort of standard? them, seemingly very significant reductions in net Tony Millns: A2 to B1, roughly GCSE. You are migration require much smaller reductions in gross dealing with people who broadly completed year 12 or immigration to obtain them? year 11 in corresponding terms in their own education Tony Millns: I doubt it because you cannot actually system. They tend not to have year 13, and a divorce the two. In terms of gross migration, you have foundation year programme does three things. It gives figures on the student side of 468,000, roughly them subject top-up, English language skills and the 200,000 of whom are on student visitor visas. The rest study skills to be an independent learner, because a are on Tier 4 visas. If you were to reduce the, if you lot of the rest of the world has much more rote like, top line number by a third, you are still left with learning than we tend to in sixth-form terms here. the problem that you will not know how many of them Now, if— have actually exited the country. You have to reduce the numbers in—the Institute for Public Policy Q29 Chair: Just following the pathway point that Research estimates—by more than half to get the was raised by Dr Huppert, how many are on the reduction in net migration on the statistics. pathway who come to learn English but then will end up at a university? Q33 Lorraine Fullbrook: I would just like to talk Tony Millns: At least 60,000 to 70,000 a year. about your second concern on the Government Chair: Will end up in a British university? consultation paper of students coming to study here Tony Millns: Yes, indeed. It is a major feeder route having level B2 English. What exactly is wrong with for universities including—you are hearing from LSE this country stating that we require people to have an and Imperial later—some of the most prestigious A-level standard of English to come here and study, institutions. If the language level was raised to B2, it particularly as you say that 30,000 go on to degree would cut out the majority of those students. standard? What exactly is wrong with that? Elizabeth McLaren: The British Council, recognised Tony Millns: Because many of them will have left worldwide as a leading authority in English language school in countries where the teaching of English is teaching, completely supports the concern about the not particularly good. Their subject teaching may have increased level. been quite good. In other words, they may be quite Chair: Yes, we will be coming to that later on. good physicists or mathematicians or whatever. They require a course that brings their English language Q30 Mark Reckless: Mr Millns, the Government has level up from around A2 to B1 to B2, IELTS 6.5 for this target of reducing immigration to the tens of university entrance, and they require that combined thousands and we made great play of that at the with the subject knowledge that is taught in and election. If we are to hit that—you are saying that through English so that they attain the subject there is a problem with the statistics that is biasing up knowledge competence in English as well as what you the estimates for net immigration of students—what is might call a general English ability. the corollary of that? Where is the higher immigration where the statistics are telling us that it is lower than Q34 Lorraine Fullbrook: Are you saying they it is in terms of a counterpart to the student mis- cannot do this in their own country before they come estimate? here? Tony Millns: Well, that is why I say I believe that the Tony Millns: It would be difficult for them to do so objective is actually unattainable, because the work and there are great advantages to learning English in numbers—Tiers 1 and 2, now combined—were an English language speaking country. previously, in 2009, 33,270 and the family routes were Chair: I think we understand. We will be coming on roughly 49,000. So putting those two together is to that later when we look at the British Council. 82,000. If you took the figure for net migration, which Thank you. it is generally accepted is 196,000, that would leave you still at 114,000 if you closed completely both Q35 Mr Clappison: I think you are saying to us that other routes other than student migration. Now, at it is a key part of this that they have the opportunity present the Government has agreed to limit the work to learn English alongside their preparation for study routes down from 33,270 to 21,700; a cut of 11,570, for their higher degrees. I have to say, if GCSE is the roughly a third. It is reviewing the family and level, as somebody with a GCSE in French, I would settlement routes. Even if it reduced those also by a not be very happy about going to learn engineering, third it would only bring net migration down to physics or law in France with my GCSE French. 168,000. That would leave the student route and you Would you? would need, as the Migration Advisory Committee Tony Millns: I took O-level. It would have been estimated, to reduce the student route by 88,000, possible to make a start on an A-level equivalent which is a third of the student route. course with a good O-level grasp of the language. Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 5

1 February 2011 Tony Millns and Elizabeth McLaren

Q36 Lorraine Fullbrook: That is what we are asking Q41 Dr Huppert: Do you have any figures on how for in the consultation paper. many students who are doing the foundation year go Tony Millns: No, B2 is much higher and that is on to do a university degree, and of those who do not, what— how many of them have left the country and how Lorraine Fullbrook: You said it was broadly A- many are missing? level standard. Tony Millns: The five leading providers of foundation Tony Millns: Yes. The proposals are jacking up the year programmes estimate that the numbers going on level to— are 97% of those taking foundation year courses. That means that 3% do not go on. I am afraid I do not have Q37 Mr Clappison: Without decrying the standards any statistics nor, I believe, does the Border Agency, of learning of O-levels, it is international comparisons, as to whether they return home. But if you look at the and on the basis of what people can understand I think report that the Home Office published back in it would be possible to over-estimate the proficiency September, The Migrant Journey, they reckon that of somebody in a language who is attaining GCSE, around 3% of students did not ultimately return home particularly their facility for understanding it and but most of those had transferred to family routes to speaking it. settlement because they had married or whatever in the UK. Tony Millns: I take your point and the foundation year programme is structured so that it is front-loaded with the English language. So they learn the English first, Q42 Chair: But you cannot do that now. You cannot get that up, and then they do the subject coverage. switch. If you come as a student you cannot stay as a spouse, can you? Tony Millns: You can, and you can also, or you could, Q38 Mr Clappison: How tight are the controls for move into the work route and that could also lead ensuring that somebody who has come here to settlement. purportedly to undertake a foundation year actually undertakes it and that when they have undertaken it Q43 Chair: But you would have no problem with the they go on to study something at a higher education Government introducing measures to stop switching? institution? Tony Millns: No, indeed. I think that what the Home Tony Millns: All of the providers who do that kind of Secretary has referred to as breaking the link between course will be Tier 4 sponsors. They will have had temporary and permanent migration is very much the compliance visits from the Border Agency. They will way to go. That is why we questioned the policy also be accredited by one of the accrediting bodies objective of reducing net migration. and they will almost all have pathways into universities and validation agreements with Q44 Chair: Indeed. Can I just explain: Members of universities. So they will be reviewed in at least three the Committee have had to leave not because of ways to make sure that they are providing a good level anything you have said. of education. Tony Millns: I should certainly hope not, Chairman. Chair: They are on another Standing Committee on Q39 Mr Clappison: Members of this Committee the police, but they will return. went to Nigeria, I think it was in 2007, and we were Tony Millns: I understand. told by the Embassy in Nigeria—they specifically drew it to our attention—that they had had a Q45 Mr Winnick: Ms McLaren, what will the significant number, I think running into the hundreds proposed changes have on the reputation of this if not thousands, of people applying from Nigeria for country, in your view, abroad? a visa to undertake a foundation year at a particular Elizabeth McLaren: I think it will certainly damage university in this country and that only a handful of our reputation as a leading education provider in the them had actually turned up for the course, although world because students will be put off by what they the visas had been issued to them. see as an unwelcoming approach to international Tony Millns: That, I would think, is unlikely to be the education and will choose other destinations. If they case today because— are finding it difficult to begin their study journey Mr Clappison: They told us that. here, as they currently would by doing English and Tony Millns: Yes, and that was 2007 before the then perhaps foundation and moving on into the points-based system was introduced and before people university sector, and they have to go elsewhere to get on the sponsor register had a duty to record and report their English medium education first, then they may students who do not arrive for the course or students well choose just to stay there for their university who depart the course early. studies and further education.

Q40 Bridget Phillipson: The point that you are Q46 Mr Winnick: Taking Mr Clappison’s point a making is that while it is important that people have moment ago about possible abuses—Nigeria was a certain level of English when they arrive, actually mentioned—do the British Council and Mr Millns being exposed to the language day to day while in the accept that abuses have occurred where prospective UK massively accelerates their language proﬁciency. students are far more concerned about coming to It is being based within an English-speaking country Britain to try and stay and work, earn their living and in order to accelerate that learning? not rely on public funds but, nevertheless, use studies Tony Millns: Yes, precisely. as a pretext for coming here? Ev 6 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

1 February 2011 Tony Millns and Elizabeth McLaren

Tony Millns: There certainly have been abuses of that Elizabeth McLaren: The strength of the UK’s kind. I think significant progress has been made in educational offer is very important in terms of the reducing them and there is certainly one proposal in UK’s reputation, and it has an impact on all areas of the current consultation that we would broadly the UK’s economy in terms of people being interested support, which is to rank countries by a risk in working with us, doing business with us, cultural assessment so that countries in the Indian relations and all the other aspects. subcontinent, Nigeria and one or two others, would be Tony Millns: I would add to that that I am sure rated higher risk and only the most highly compliant university colleagues will point out that some very sponsor institutions would be able to recruit students significant departments, particularly in science, from there. There are difficult human rights issues technology, engineering and maths, are only kept open involved in making that judgement but certainly it is by international student fees. one of the Border Agency’s proposals. Chair: Thank you. We have some very quick If I might, Chairman, just on Mr Winnick’s first point, supplementaries from Members of the Committee international education is a growth sector of the because the next witnesses are here. economy and likely to be a very important part of the knowledge economy of the future. I have here the Q52 Nicola Blackwood: I just wanted to return to International Students Strategy for Australia running the language proficiency issue for a moment. If the up to 2014. It is Australia’s third largest export sector. level is increased to B2 I understand that the They have grown it from 47,000 students in 1990 to Government is currently proposing to allow a pre- 500,000, i.e. more than 10 times, in 2009, and they are sessional course of just three months. But if they aggressively attacking us. This document points out— extended that to one year to allow highly trusted Chair: The Australians? sponsors to offer English language courses and Tony Millns: Yes, very aggressively. foundation courses specifically for that route that you have mentioned, would that meet the requirements of Q47 Chair: Revenge over the cricket, no doubt. Are the industry? they our biggest competitors? Tony Millns: That would certainly help, or leaving the Tony Millns: Australia, Canada and the US are the level for NQF level 3 courses currently at B1 would main competitors, Chairman, yes. be the other way of doing it. We have discussed both with the Border Agency. Q48 Mr Winnick: Do you accept that the large majority of those over the years who have come to Q53 Nicola Blackwood: Those are the two options study in this country are genuine? that you are recommending? Tony Millns: Absolutely. We have no doubt about Tony Millns: Well, we would regard them as a that, especially if they come to legitimate institutions. reasonable concession, given the damage that the current proposal is likely to do. Q49 Mr Winnick: Would you put a percentage on it? In broad terms, 70%? Less? More? Q54 Mark Reckless: Would you at least agree that Tony Millns: That is extremely difficult, partly immigration could be reduced by restricting the post- because it is varied and partly because, going back to study work route? what I said about the previous Register of Education Tony Millns: It is difficult to estimate that and the and Training Providers, roughly half the colleges that consultation paper does not try. Post-study work is an were able, prior to 2007, to bring in students have had important component of the offer of a degree course the power to do so removed from them. Now, not all in the UK. Well, students say this and I think you of those were, shall we say, actively bogus in terms will find in the consultation that a lot of students have of being fronts for immigration. Some of them were responded on that point. The Australian strategy that simply poor quality and were ripping off the students. I have referred to makes great play of the fact that It is difficult to know how many were bogus, but there that element makes their offer better than ours. is no doubt that it was a significant loophole and I have said so before to this Committee. Q55 Chair: How many years do they have? Tony Millns: Two years. Q50 Mr Winnick: The previous Government closed Chair: The Australians offer two years. it? Tony Millns: Moved to close it. The actual measures Q56 Lorraine Fullbrook: On your statistics, what were not taken until 2007Ð08, and came into force are the top five countries requiring student entry largely in 2009, which was only barely a year before visas? the 2010 general election. Chair: In the world, you mean? Lorraine Fullbrook: Yes. Q51 Mr Winnick: We have the point. Ms McLaren, Chair: I think it comes from Elizabeth McLaren’s should we be concerned about the international statement that we are the best in the world. Which are reputation of this country? Ministers would say first the other four? and foremost we should be concerned about our own Lorraine Fullbrook: In terms of countries asking for position: tightening controls, avoiding abuses. How student visa entries to the UK, what are the top five far, in your view, should we be concerned about an countries your statistics show? adverse effect abroad from Britain’s reputation for Tony Millns: Source countries from which students receiving students? come to the UK? Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 7

1 February 2011 Tony Millns and Elizabeth McLaren

Lorraine Fullbrook: Yes. Chair: For yourselves, yes. It would be very helpful Chair: Is that right, Ms Fullbrook? if we could have your list as well. Lorraine Fullbrook: Yes. Tony Millns: Yes, of course. Tony Millns: Is that what you mean? Chair: Where do they come from? Q58 Chair: Thank you very much. Thank you for Tony Millns: China, Russia, India, probably currently giving evidence. We are most grateful. What would still Japan and South Korea in terms of English be very helpful: you seem to know a lot about language students. Australia, Ms McLaren. Would you have this information about the Australian model? Q57 Lorraine Fullbrook: You seem quite doubtful. Elizabeth McLaren: We can find it for you. Do you not have statistics that show this? Chair: Would you? That would be very helpful. Tony Millns: Well, we have statistics that show the Thank you very much. Thank you for giving major source countries for English language students. evidence today. I think you are asking me about education overall. Tony Millns: Thank you very much. Lorraine Fullbrook: Correct. Tony Millns: I would have to go back to the Home Q59 Chair: We will be following up this point. I Office documents and look at that. I could not give think it is unsatisfactory that the authority for you— accreditation agencies has expired. Chair: We have the top five. It is in the consultation Tony Millns: It has technically lapsed because it has document: China, 20,000; India, 18,000; Pakistan, not been renewed. 13,000; Russia, 9,000; United States, 9,000; Taiwan, Chair: We will write to the Minister. Thank you. 8,000. Elizabeth McLaren: It is obviously different from the priority markets for English.

Examination of Witnesses

Witnesses: Professor Steve Smith, President of Universities UK, and Professor Edward Acton, Vice- Chancellor of the University of East Anglia, gave evidence.

Q60 Chair: Professor Acton and Professor Smith, undergrads and the postgraduate research students are thank you for giving evidence. You may have heard there for three years, it amounts to a very large income some of the previous evidence. How does this stream and those coming via the pathway are consultation concerning sub-degree level have an absolutely vital and the biggest growth sector. We impact on UK universities? Because it appears that estimate in Britain there are now 60,000 students on the Government does not have the universities in their pre-university pathways of one form or another. We sights as far as bogus colleges are concerned and estimate that 70% of those would never have crossed stopping abuse. the border if the rule were B2 English and that the Professor Acton: It is very important to emphasise cost in fees alone would be £1 billion recurrent. the distinction between pre-university, which is our concern—courses people come and take designed to Q62 Chair: Professor Smith, would you agree with prepare them for a degree—and sub-degree. The real that? distinction, our preoccupation, is about pre-degree Professor Smith: Yes. If you look at the national data because many countries in the world do not do the it is quite compelling. We do not need to be hysterical second year of A-level, and especially about this in any way. 46% of undergraduates, non-Commonwealth countries, and do not have overseas and non-EU undergraduates; 33% of adequate English to move into a degree programme. postgraduate taught, 46% of postgraduate research As Australia and America are finding, the year pre- international students have previous experience of degree is critical to recruiting undergraduates studying in the UK. So a large percentage of the especially, but some English for postgraduates, from student body comes here for language top-up or those countries. That is our concern: protect the whatever before. We understand the politics. We pathways and do not impose a language barrier, B2, understand the pressures. which would actually suffocate those. For us, it seems paradoxical at a time when we are trying to find growth in the economy. Here is an Q61 Chair: How many of your students would come export industry, by some estimates the seventh largest export industry in the UK. The market is growing at to the University of East Anglia via the pathway? 7% a year. The UK is the second most successful Professor Acton: A very significant proportion of sector in the world. It would be worth, over the next the undergraduates. 15 years, an additional £5 billion of export earnings Chair: How many is that? per year to the UK on top of the £5.3 billion it earns. Professor Acton: Well, each year we recruit about 400 1 It seems crazy to stop that development by focusing overseas students. Cumulatively, because the on—using inappropriate methodology—something we 1 The witness later estimated 600 overseas students were think is not a problem. The key figure for me, Chair, recruited via Pathways annually. is the UKBA say, quite rightly, that there is Ev 8 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

1 February 2011 Professor Steve Smith and Professor Edward Acton non-compliance, but in the university sector it is under Professor Acton: My understanding is while you are 2%. So we think it is a sledgehammer to crack a nut. a student you do not add to your right to settle. While you are here it is discounted. You cannot say, “Hey, I Q63 Chair: Well, that is pretty clear to the have been here for five years”. No. If you are a Committee. You talked about understanding the student: zero points. My greatest concern about the politics of this. How can we help the Government debate around this is that it leads to confusion. People achieve what it is going to achieve without damaging say, “Well, because some students stay there is a sort UK universities? Is there anything that can be done? of doubt cast over the whole lot of them”. The issue of bogus colleges aside—because no one is We, therefore, risk being misled into thinking of them suggesting that any UK university is a bogus not as rather long-term tourists pouring foreign university; at least I have not heard it being currency on to our goods and services but as a source suggested—what can we do to help the Government? of people who are going to stay. In that respect, I Professor Acton: I strongly support the UKBA’s plan would rather like it if we severed it but we should be to restrict recruitment to highly trusted status very clear: Britain is dependent for its postgraduate sponsors. It is absolutely right about that, but the research, especially in STEM subjects, on foreign accreditation for that status should be even tighter, and students. It is sad and in 10 years we may get more it would be very wise for Britain to insist on Brits to do it but we are failing at the moment. If we significant deposits for all students entering the denied PGRs the prospect of staying and of bringing country. their family, I am afraid we will see a very quick Chair: Deposits of money? decline in STEM subject research here. Professor Acton: Yes. Thirdly, as soon as they can, it Professor Smith: Could I just add to that? The would be very good if the UKBA would tell each UKBA’s own data is very interesting on this. UKBA sponsor when their offer letter—CAS it is called—has data show us that actually if you take five years after been used to give a student a visa, when that student study, only 3% of the students who come in have any enters the country and when they leave the country. claim to settlement and have tried to settle. 85% have At the moment UKBA cannot tell us but it is racing either left or have gone on to further study and, of the towards getting the methodology for that through e- remainder, many of them are in work and that should Borders. not be a surprise because 39% of international students study the very subjects that the CBI and Q64 Chair: Why do they not tell you? everyone tells us are in high demand, namely the Professor Acton: They are only setting up e-Borders, STEM subjects, the science subjects. It is hardly this wonderful system—and the Government is surprising that they stay, because the UK knowledge backing it to the hilt—which will, for the first time, economy needs these graduates in many cases to go check individually when people leave the country. As into the universities. I think it would be a massive soon as that is completely in place, Britain will have own goal for us to try and restrict those students figures for net migration so vastly superior to what it because they are vital to the health of the UK is proposed to use at the moment that we will knowledge economy, which, as I said earlier, is the retrospectively look back and say, “If we had been second strongest in the world. guided by the International Passenger Survey we would have done terrible national damage”. Q67 Mark Reckless: Could the post-study work route be restricted so that it was only if you were Q65 Chair: I want to ask you about the definition of working within academia in the way you describe? the word “student” and whether that is the problem. I Would that be one way to break the escalator have always understood “student” to be someone who mechanism where people come in at foundation and comes and studies and leaves. Is that your then stay on forever, at least in some cases? understanding? Professor Smith: Two very quick points on that. Professor Acton: Yes, insofar as, for the purposes of Firstly, I do think we need to think about the this exercise, it is people with a visa that has an end international messaging. It is about is the UK open for point, at which point they must leave the country business? As someone who, as President of unless Britain has decided—it is a separate issue—to Universities UK, travelled with the Prime Minister to give them a different kind of visa. That is who we are both China and India, it was very interesting, in both talking about. In our view, they come, they study, they those education summits the Indian Minister and the leave or, but it is not up to the universities, Britain Chinese Minister said, “We are worried about the visa decides, “You we would like to stay”. issue. Does the UK want our students?” So I think there is a lot— Q66 Nicola Blackwood: Do you think, then, that the route through foundation course to undergraduate to Q68 Chair: What did the Prime Minister say to that? Masters to PhD or DPhil through post-work study into Professor Smith: The Prime Minister was not in that Tier 1 or 2 visa is too direct a route to settlement? meeting. This was the Education Minister. Because once you have been through that study course Chair: What did he say to that? you have been here 10 years and you are accruing the Professor Smith: They all said, of course, “The UK right to remain. Is that something that you think is open for business”. No one wants to damage the should be addressed in order to stop this confusion university sector. Our concern is that the effect—may between what you call a student and what we would be unintended—is to damage the university sector, call an immigrant? and post-study work is exactly an image. Our Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 9

1 February 2011 Professor Steve Smith and Professor Edward Acton competitor knowledge economies offer that. They see Q72 Mr Clappison: I am not suggesting that, no. it as a great hint as to why you should come and study Professor Smith: It is not that they are crowding out in another country; precisely because it gives you a home students. The answer to the problem is to do right to do work after you graduate. everything we can to improve science education in our schools and I accept that. But that does not mean the Q69 Mark Reckless: Professor Smith, I find this way you deal with that is to say then, “Let us make it quite difficult because you speak with similar more difficult”— enthusiasm, it seems to me, on both of these issues. Chair: We will be hearing from the scientists very But I draw a distinction between not wanting to put shortly. artificial barriers in the way of university recruitment and artificially making it more attractive to come to Q73 Nicola Blackwood: I just wanted to pick up on university by saying, “Well, if you graduate here we a point that you made about our competitors offering will let you stay on afterwards for post-study work. post-study work routes as something valuable to Do you understand the distinction that I and my attract students. Could you give us an idea of what constituents have potentially drawn there? other countries offer comparable routes and how they Professor Smith: Yes. Although there is no evidence, handle it? is there, that students who stay on are, in large part, Professor Acton: I do not think I can give you the taking the jobs of people in the local economy? precision I would like to. I could easily answer by Because the jobs they are taking are related to the letter, but both Australia and America do. France is high-level skills they have gained. proposing to do so for three years. You know the French have crossed the Rubicon and are teaching Q70 Mr Clappison: I am with you on a lot of what degrees in English, so delicious is the world market. you say but I am afraid not on your last point, because Chair: Professors, we would be very grateful to have we hear that all the time. It is the same argument that that comparison. It would be very helpful if we could is produced by the CBI saying, “Let us recruit the have that. skilled workers we need overseas and bring them to Professor Smith: We can send that to you. this country because we cannot get the people here”. Chair: Thank you. The answer to that is we are not training the people we have here and if we listen to that argument all the Q74 Alun Michael: I have a question to put to each time we never will do. Can I ask you, Professor of you, but before I do could I just pick up one Acton— comment that flashed past, which was a reference to Alun Michael: Can we hear a response to that rather increasing deposits or the requirement for deposits. I think it was Professor Acton who raised that point. tendentious point? Wouldn’t that favour the well off and not necessarily Mr Clappison: Yes, please do. Yes, fine, have a the talented, and isn’t it really a non-relevant test? debate about it. Professor Acton: Of course I follow that danger, but Professor Smith: Let us look at the data. There is now we think that there is a very strong correlation an upturn at the moment but the UK simply is not between those who put up a big deposit and those who producing enough people at age 16—at 16, forget are completely serious about coming and complete university—with the skills level. 52.5% of 16-year- their degree. Given concerns about any apparent olds do not have five GCSEs A to C. Where are the misuse of the Tier 4 system, I think it would be a jobs for these people? Many UK science departments really good way of tightening it. would not be in existence but for international students because those students are needed to keep the Q75 Alun Michael: Not to delay us but could you science subjects healthy. So my view is there is a give us written evidence for that assertion? massive issue about skills in the UK but the way of Professor Acton: Yes. dealing with it is not to say to people from abroad, Alun Michael: It seems to me rather dubious but that “Do not come”. It is to make sure that we do is because I have not seen evidence on it. everything to support the development of training and Professor Acton: Yes. education in our school system. Q76 Alun Michael: Professor Smith, in your Q71 Mr Clappison: I hear what you say on that and evidence you say there is a lack of basic data about the STEM subjects, the science subjects that you were student visas and who they are issued to. Can you talking about. The problem has been that we have elaborate on that and ways in which the data could been producing fewer and fewer people who are be improved? qualified at A-level and so on to enter the university Professor Smith: Our main concern is that the data to study those subjects, and that problem has been that are driving the proposals of UKBA are very, very developing and continuing all the time that we have unreliable. Last year, 273,000 student visas were been admitting the students. We should be issued. Of course, we know how many come to the concentrating, shouldn’t we, on educating students in universities. What we are asking for, to be honest, is this country to a high level to go into science subjects? that the highly trusted status sponsors are the focus of It is masking the problem. the relationship between the student visa, the student Professor Smith: Yes, but if I may, one obvious point: arriving and then the student leaving. We can actually no international student takes a place that is available test that. Our problem with all the data is that there is for a home student. They are in addition. not the linkage shown between the methodology they Ev 10 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

1 February 2011 Professor Steve Smith and Professor Edward Acton are using through the International Passenger Survey If a government of 2005 had pursued the very to estimate students leaving. That is our major approach that MAC has adopted and is trying, concern. believing it must use the IPS—now, the IPS was found, after the 2001 census, to be the primary source Q77 Alun Michael: Are you satisfied that all of the most appalling miscalculation. There were universities would be capable, provided they choose 800,000 missing young men and it shocked—I do not to do so, of achieving that highly trusted status? The know how many of you remember it. I do not reason I ask that is obviously the economic remember it at all. But what was the prime source of contribution to some of the more local and newer that? The IPS had undercounted young people leaving universities is absolutely crucial. Is it possible for any the country. They still are, massively. Now, though, university to reach that sort of status and have the because of this Government’s admirable support for correct systems in place? the institution of the system called e-Borders, which Professor Smith: First, yes, it is. We think all the 133 counts every individual arriving and leaving, but the members of Universities UK will easily be able to system is not yet covering all— achieve that. Secondly, your comment about the economy is actually, for me, the key issue. It is not Q79 Chair: They have teething problems. We do about universities. It is about UK PLC. If you look know about that. at the contribution of international students to local Professor Acton: But if we could use it, there is a economies—forgive me if I just use one sentence on way of using it not to do net migration—that we will my local example—we commissioned Oxford have by 2013—but to do a test, which I urge you to Economics to do the analysis of what international ask the Government to do: look at the names and students contributed to the Exeter region birthdays of the 100,000 non-EU students graduating economically. We have 3,400 international students. in whichever year we can do, and I think 2010 is the They contribute £57 million to the Exeter economy one e-Borders could do; check who among those have and are creating, with knock-on multipliers, 2,100 a visa that expires and check which of those left. Now, jobs. Think of the growth if we can double our that is a realism. When I said this to the Minister and international student numbers or grow them at 7% a the UKBA official—and they are extremely helpful, year as the evidence shows us. But think of the cost they are asking UUK to second somebody to work if we have to cut them back. This would be felt in with them—they said, “That would be awfully every university city in the country and it is thousands expensive”. I said, “The universities will pay”. The of jobs. stakes are terrifying. This could be done extremely quickly. Q78 Alun Michael: Thank you. Professor Acton, you comment that the Migration Advisory Committee, Q80 Chair: You would pay for this exercise? “is obliged to rely on the data collected by the Professor Acton: Yes. International Passenger Survey. The MAC’s own Chair: We will put this to the Minister next week. opinion of this data is not flattering”. Again, how can Professor Acton: Will you? Please do. we improve that situation? Chair: Yes, we will. Professor Acton: I am very glad you have asked me Professor Acton: But it must be done in February. that. I am really concerned in the national interest that There is a hurry because like Steve— if UKBA/Home Office policy is guided by the Chair: We will definitely put— International Passenger Survey, guided by the target Professor Acton:—I want the message to go out, laid out in the 350-page MAC report of November, “Britain is really open. Britain is the warmest place to which is to reduce net immigration via the student international HE students”. route to 23,000, we will reduce university recruitment Chair: Yes, indeed. alone by something of the order of 60%. I have done Professor Acton: We are yearning to develop and a little exercise. expand. In March every part of the economy will be Imagine in 2005 the Government of that day had said, seeking ways of growing. “The International Passenger Survey is showing an Chair: Professor, thank you. alarming growth in net migration of our students. We will peg it. We will hold it to 23,000”, which is what Q81 Dr Huppert: I apologise for interrupting this MAC is proposing. Do you know what the cost would flow. I think there are some very compelling things on have been by 2011? This is demonstrable. It is not the figures there about number of students and the imaginary. The statistics on what the fees and process there and about the economic benefits. Would recruitment actually were, they are all there. But if you say there are some less tangible benefits as well you imagine that we had capped the number of to domestic students from having international international students coming in, in 2008Ð09 instead exposure to different ways of thinking, whether in the of the £2.3 billion that the Home Secretary rightly scientific fields, humanities fields and so forth? Have celebrates in the introduction to the consultation, fee you done any work to look at those? Is there any way income would have been £1.1 billion. At steady state, of surveying that or quantifying that at all? by 2010Ð11 fee income to universities would be £1.8 Professor Smith: Briefly, yes, massive benefits. If you billion lower than it is in the current year. The think about the things that make people employable— cumulative costs between 2005 and now would be £6 being aware of international cultural issues, maybe billion. Add in the off-campus expenditure: it would experience of studying in other countries—for the UK be £12 billion. student it is a real marker. Tomorrow’s graduates need Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 11

1 February 2011 Professor Steve Smith and Professor Edward Acton to be people that can move culturally and US. The US after 9/11 restricted its visas. It led to geographically. Frankly, at Exeter where we have a 20% reduction in international student applications. grown international students significantly, we have Australia, early 2010, changed its visa regulations. It found the effects enormously beneficial; also on the led to a 16% reduction. Both of them have reversed cultural life of the city. It is Chinese New Year this it. So I think the damage is the image that we send out week. To see our students taking the Chinese dragon about the UK, and the UK higher education sector— through the streets of Exeter is a great issue for the whatever we think, whatever our moans and groans— town. I think there are all sorts of benefits to our is the second strongest in the world. It can grow. It students and also to the local society. can bring in more earnings to this country and more jobs, not just in universities but in all the communities Q82 Mr Winnick: I wonder if I could be the devil’s around them. advocate for a second. What would you professors say to those who, hearing your evidence today, would say, Q84 Mr Winnick: What is our standing at the “Here are two distinguished academics, no doubt very moment, before these restrictions come into force? genuine, but who do not understand the very high What is our standing in the countries where students feelings over the need for immigration controls to be want to come and study? more effective, to cut down on immigrants and the Professor Smith: Incredibly high. I mean incredibly rest”; that in other words you are living, to use a high. We get 11.8% of the international students in the phrase, in an ivory tower? Professor Smith? world. It has stayed the same since 2001. The US has Professor Smith: I would sit down with people and I gone down from 25% of the market to 20%. That would say, “I do understand the problem. It is in the market, as I said earlier, is going to expand. If we community I live in and I am aware of that”. But when wished to, we could expand our involvement in that you then ask people, “By the way, what do you mean market as well. I think it is a win-win and it is a big by immigration?” they do not mean students who win for the UK economy. come, study, enrich the society and, do you know what, leave. The non-compliance of the student body Q85 Nicola Blackwood: You have spoken about the at universities is 2%. That is not the problem. The impacts on the economy of some of these changes. I problem: the public perception is about immigration. wonder if you could talk a little bit about the impact It is not about economic students coming in and on the academic standards at the universities that these studying in the UK and then leaving the country. I changes might have. understand the problem but it is the wrong target. Professor Acton: I think that it relates to the point Students come and leave. that Dr Huppert brought up. The experience of home Professor Acton: I think there is a problem about and EU students of intellectually mingling with those public perception; that they do not welcome additional from 150 different counties in the world is greatly people, especially when there is unemployment. But enriched. British students are extraordinarily reluctant exactly like Steve, Migration Watch itself says, to go abroad. We must all encourage them to do so “Students who come, study and leave are not the more. But at least they can spot how fast the world problem”. They are very like tourists. They are is changing and study other cultures alive by sitting spending foreign money. alongside them in seminars. Chair: We will be hearing from them next week. Professor Acton: Well, that may not be all they have Q86 Nicola Blackwood: But is it simply a matter of to say. cultural enrichment or is it a matter of learning alternative methodologies and actually increasing Q83 Mr Winnick: Migration Watch, which believes academic status and standing of students? it has some sacred duty to save us from foreigners, is Professor Acton: Enormously at the research level, quite able to speak for itself. What would be the sort enormously. We must really recognise the advantages of impact abroad if the general feeling was that Britain of different approaches that other cultures bring to us. was closing up for business as far as studies are At the undergraduate level I do think British higher concerned; that we would cut down drastically on the education is the best in the world. I think it teaches a sort of students who are going to your universities method of problematizing and not just taking it as read and others? from the professor that many cultures still really Professor Acton: I think even our research alliances value, because that is our approach and it is not, as would be affected. There is some hurt felt by some yet, universal. parts of the world when it is felt Britain is not that warming and the exact reverse when they say, “But Q87 Nicola Blackwood: How many foreign research Britain is the best, the most open and warm”. I cannot students are involved in that undergraduate teaching tell you the soft power we get from alumni abroad. and what would happen if those numbers were They are there, Anglophile, love their contacts and, I reduced? am afraid, steer a lot of things in our direction that Professor Acton: Well, a lot of them are, partly by will not be steered if we were ever to say, “We do not way of training them for a prospective academic life. want international students”. I do not think I have a figure for that. Would you, Professor Smith: Can I just add it is largely also a Steve? matter of impression. A policy that is not aimed at the Professor Smith: No. There are 23,000 postgraduate universities can still have the effect of cutting back research international students in the UK. As you will applications. Take two cases: take Australia and the know, commonly now students are not just thrown Ev 12 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

1 February 2011 Professor Steve Smith and Professor Edward Acton into it. When I did a PhD you just went off and did British Council said, but to us they have said there are it. Now it is about research training and so teaching rather worrying articles appearing in India and China is part of that; so you will find that. To be honest with especially. Almost whatever the consultation were to you, the key issue is that international students enrich say there would be worry. Some of the proposals, and every aspect of the life of our campuses and I think it the B2 one is the absolute Exocet, would have is a mindset issue, to be candid. We want the UK to repercussions. We would sit here in a year and say, be more globalised, more open. The economies that “Could we really have done that deliberately?” are going to succeed in the future are going to be the knowledge economies—preparing people for jobs for Q89 Chair: There is no prospect of filling this gap the future, not jobs in the past—and to do that you by universities themselves opening campuses or have to have those linkages with the other leading offices in other countries? knowledge economies in the world. Professor Acton: You see, the point of the pre- By the way, the really interesting thing is that because university route is that you need, especially from Asia, of these connections with international students to have immersion in a society where English is what coming to the UK, UK universities are increasingly you hear on the radio, watch on the telly, hear spoken forming deep, sustainable research linkages with the all the time. People who study English for years and other leading universities in the world. What we do years and years but never mingle with anybody not want to do is to say, “We do not want to be part English speaking cannot get to B2 from Asia. They of that game”. can a bit in North Europe. They cannot even in Southern Europe. It is hopeless in Asia. Q88 Chair: So those who are rubbing their hands with glee are the Americans and the Canadians and Q90 Chair: Professor Acton and Professor Smith, the Australians? thank you very much for coming in. We would Professor Acton: They really are. The same agents appreciate something in writing on the points that very often guide prospective applicants: which of have been raised by Members of the Committee if you these three English-speaking countries would you are able to do that. Thank you. like? At the moment, until we finish this and get the Professor Acton: Thank you. message out for pre-university pathways, “Britain is Professor Smith: Thank you. the warmest place”, there is a danger. There is a sort of nervousness in the market. I do not know what the

Examination of Witnesses

Witnesses: Professor David Wark FRS, Imperial College London/Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, and Mr Simeon Underwood, Academic Registrar, London School of Economics, gave evidence.

Q91 Chair: Professor Wark and Mr Underwood, instance—are heavily dependent on these students. thank you very much for coming in. Professor Wark, 40% of our engineering students come from non-EEA. we have made the decision not to ask you any If we were to lose those students it would have a questions on physics. This is just about visas, though severe impact on our ability to perform the research Dr Huppert, I think, probably is one of those who that keeps Imperial College as a world-leading would be able to ask you those questions. Can I start institution. That would have an obvious effect on the by asking each of you about the dependency that UK students. If 40% are non-EEA, 60% of them are Imperial and the LSE have on foreign students? How home or EU. If our programmes are crippled it will important are international students to the work and hurt those students and then— the life of your university? Professor Wark? Professor Wark: Well, our international students and Q92 Chair: Mr Underwood, the LSE? Now, we our non-EEA students are absolutely critical to would imagine that probably everyone is an Imperial College. I have sent some of these numbers international student there? in. I will just quickly repeat a few, just to make the Mr. Underwood: A slight exaggeration but not much. point. About 29% of our student body are non-EEA 51% of the full-time student population at the LSE are but we derive from those 29% of our students 62% of non-EU international students. They account for 41% our fee income. So last year £75.1 million in fee of our undergraduate population and 59% of our income came from non-EEA students. Obviously, postgraduate population. It depends on how you count from a purely financial point of view, it would be this, but they are drawn from over 100 countries devastating to Imperial to have any significant cut in across the globe. The fee income from students paying that number of students. overseas fee amounts to £65 million, which is 30% of In addition, there were several points made here today. the school’s income. I will not go into great lengths but I just want to reinforce what has been said on a couple of points. Q93 Chair: Of the 51% that you mentioned, how One is the absolute critical problem that would be many do you think would be affected by the produced in many of our research areas if we lost our Government’s proposals? postgraduate research students who are non-EEA. Mr. Underwood: It is very difficult to tell without Many of our most critical subjects—engineering, for crying wolf. Our impression from actually surveying Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 13

1 February 2011 Professor David Wark FRS and Mr Simeon Underwood our own students is that, of the Government’s from the Third World, so I do not think Migration proposals, the one that would matter most to the Watch would object. students—and this runs counter to previous evidence you have had this morning—is the post-study work Q100 Chair: Figures? restrictions or rather discontinuation. Professor Wark: The other point I would raise is, once again, this question of English proficiency tests. We Q94 Chair: If that stopped your 51% would be what? would strongly hold that that is an academic Mr. Underwood: Would certainly reduce dramatically judgement. The level at which somebody has to speak at the postgraduate level. English is very different for a classics degree at Oxford or a degree in electrical engineering or Q95 Chair: Professor Wark, you gave us a figure. theoretical physics, and we feel we are the best place What was your figure for overseas students? to make that. I just point out that if the US had Professor Wark: 29% of our total student body. imposed that requirement when Nambu came to the United States, I do not think he could pass a B2 test Q96 Chair: If these proposals were implemented, today but it did not stop him from getting a Nobel what would that do to your figure, roughly? prize. So I think that we would be limiting ourselves Professor Wark: Well, obviously it is going to go to a subcategory of the students, those with down. I do not know how you estimate by how much. exceptional English skills, who are not necessarily the I can run through each one of the proposals in order ones we are most interested in at Imperial. if you like but, all in all, they seem to be producing an attempt to reduce the numbers by making it less Q101 Chair: But you heard the point made by Mr attractive to come here to study. We feel that that Clappison, or maybe you did not, about the level of would be a disastrous thing for Imperial. Imperial English that is required? I am not suggesting Mr competes for the very best students in the world, and Clappison is up for a Nobel prize but— if you simply make it less attractive to come here to Professor Wark: But, once again, with all due respect, study the people you deter first are the very best, not we teach these students every year, thousands of them, the scammers that you want to get rid of. so we are quite aware of how well they can speak English when they arrive. Obviously, we would prefer that they speak English better. However, their level of Q97 Chair: But those who are following this debate, training in the specialist areas that are of primary the politics of the debate, would not have expected interest to us are so good that we are— that proposals of this kind—which is to do primarily with cutting down on students who are not genuine— Q102 Chair: So you support the English language would be affecting world-class institutions like colleges when they talk about the pathway? Imperial College and the LSE. Professor Wark: Yes. Well, we would certainly Professor Wark: Let me give you a few examples of support the idea that you should leave the judgement how— of someone’s English language skills to the higher Chair: Not too many; just one or two. education institutions that can make the judgement of Professor Wark: Yes. First, to back up a point that whose English is good enough to attend our course. has been made earlier, more than half of all of our Chair: Thank you. undergraduates who arrive non-EEA come to us through a UK non-degree-granting institution, more Q103 Dr Huppert: Firstly, having done university than half. So any reduction in the ability of those non- admissions, I would echo that. Nobody wants to teach degree-granting institutions to get non-EEA students a student who cannot understand, so one tries to judge would obviously directly affect us. I have to agree that. I was just interested in the figures about students about the post-study work, which would make us quite coming particularly with a post-study work visa. Have a bit less attractive. The idea of spouses being unable you seen the survey that the National Union of to work, I personally would not be sitting here if that Students did that found, I think, that about 73%—I were the case because I would have never come to am not sure on the last digit—of students said that if Britain 21 years ago. it was not for post-study work visas they would not come? Would that fit with your experiences? Q98 Chair: I am not checking your immigration Mr. Underwood: We have conducted our own survey status but you came— at the LSE of our own students across the board. We Professor Wark: I feel as if somebody is about to feel got a response rate of about 40%; so we got 1,800 my collar. students responding. Of those, when we asked a Chair: But you came as a spouse? slightly more neutral question than the NUS, “When Professor Wark: No. I came as an academic but if my you decided to apply to study in the UK was the wife, who is a highly trained orthopaedic nurse, had entitlement to PSW a factor in your decision?”, 56% been unable to work in the UK we would not have answered yes. So it is a slightly less loaded question come. than the NUS. It is a slightly lower figure but it is still higher than one might expect. In the free text Q99 Mr Winnick: Migration Watch will not like comments we have a number of individual cases that. where students spell out the choices they had and, Professor Wark: Well, my wife is a specialist nurse looking through those comments that we have in a hospital that is desperately trying to recruit nurses received over the past fortnight, I would say that in a Ev 14 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

1 February 2011 Professor David Wark FRS and Mr Simeon Underwood significant minority of cases it is not just that post- has said except the emphasis on science. The LSE is study work was a factor but that it was the factor. fundamentally a multicultural institution. It is recognised globally as such and part of the point of it Q104 Mr Winnick: In fact, you speak about your is actually the exposure of both UK and international immigration status in a memo that you kindly sent us, students to this multinational, global community. Professor Wark, and you say that if you had not been I think one of the points, if I might pick up on the allowed to stay arising from your marriage you would discussion about post-study work, that is actually at have left the country. issue here is that we are finding, through having asked Professor Wark: I would have never come in the first employers, through having asked our students, that place. If my wife was unable to secure work in the some of the jobs that they are getting with post-study UK—I took a significant— work are not, in effect, British jobs. They are jobs in Mr Winnick: I meant it in that way. I put it multinational organisations, multinational companies. somewhat differently. In a sense it is global companies seeking global Professor Wark: Yes. I took a significant pay cut analysts to do global jobs and that is very much what coming here. To have coupled that to my wife going an LSE and I think an Imperial and the science area from more highly paid than I was to being is training its students for. unemployed, I am afraid that would have not been appealing enough. Q107 Mr Winnick: The overseas income that the Mr Winnick: I am sure the academic community are colleges receive, Imperial and LSE, how far does that very pleased indeed, Professor, that you have stayed contribute to helping UK students? on. Professor Wark: Obviously, Imperial College is an Professor Wark: I hope a majority at least. educational charity and does not make a profit, and so the money that we bring in is spent on our mission. Q105 Mr Winnick: Can I come to the question again The teaching income we bring in is spent on the in your memo where you say, “30% of our students mission of teaching. Foreign non-EEA students are gave us more than 70% of our fee income”? That is not given preferential treatment in teaching, even at Imperial College. Are you basing to a large extent though they pay more, and as a consequence the UK, your argument that so much—70%—of the income, the home students that we teach, get a better standard in student fees at least, that the college gets is from of teaching. They have more resources available to overseas students and that is all the more reason it them, subsidised by the non-EEA students. It is just should continue? inevitable given the numbers. Professor Wark: Well, I do not think one, in the Mr. Underwood: Yes, there is a significant cross- current economic climate, can possibly ignore that subsidy. The amount that we get under current point. To me, I must admit I was shocked when I arrangements, through the current student loan discovered that number. I had not realised it was so arrangements and the Tier grant from Government, large until I looked into the evidence for this adds up to about £6,200. The actual cost of teaching Committee. From my personal point of view, the more students varies enormously by different discipline but important point is that science is a completely call it somewhere in the region of £7,500. So there is international activity. I work in projects that span the an implicit subsidy from international students across globe and we more or less ignore national boundaries. to our home student activity. Of course, in the current The people who do this science flow back and forth range of discussions about where we are going to set to try to find those groups that are the world leaders our fees this becomes a very live issue for all in the specialist subject that they are pursuing. For the universities. UK to continue to compete successfully in that, then our groups that are world leading have to be able to bring in the people from other countries who want to Q108 Chair: On average how much does it cost for work in those groups, while our people who want to an overseas student to study at the LSE? work on a different specialty that we are not the best Mr. Underwood: At undergraduate level in the region at in the UK go to a group somewhere else. There is of £10,000. At postgraduate level it varies enormously this constant flow of researchers back and forth. If we because we have banded fees, so anywhere between cut ourselves off from that we might stop people £10,000 and £20,000. coming in; we will not stop the ones going out. The Chair: A year? consequence of that is UK science will be weakened Mr. Underwood: Yes. to the detriment of those people in the UK who study in my group. Almost all of my current students are Q109 Chair: What about Imperial? UK and they benefit from the interaction with the Professor Wark: I have the figures on my computer. international people who are allowed to come in to As is the case at LSE, the amount varies by a huge teach them. range. Chair: But undergraduate is about £10,000, is it? Q106 Mr Winnick: Mr Underwood, would that be Professor Wark: No, rather more than that. the position as far as LSE is concerned; that the bulk Chair: How much more? of your income comes from foreign students? Professor Wark: Can I write you a letter? I hate to Mr. Underwood: 30% of our overall income comes give you a number that is wrong, but it is more like from foreign students, so it is the majority of the fee £17,000, I believe, is the average. income. I would agree with everything Professor Wark Chair: Indeed, you can do that. Thank you. Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 15

1 February 2011 Professor David Wark FRS and Mr Simeon Underwood

Q110 Nicola Blackwood: I have a letter here that has told that we were not producing enough scientists in been published in The Times today from UK business this country and that as far as putting skilled— schools who are concerned about the impact that these Professor Wark: I completely agree with that. I could proposals will have on them. You are concerned about go on at tremendous length on that point, but this is the impact it will have on science; the LSE has other not the way to address it. concerns. Which disciplines do you think will be disproportionately affected or do you think that all Q113 Mr Clappison: Yes. I am not suggesting it was disciplines will be equally affected by these a trade-off between the two. proposals? Mr. Underwood: At postgraduate level, where there Mr. Underwood: I do not think anyone knows because is no control over numbers in the way that there is at the UKBA consultation document does not really undergraduate level, we are actually to a large extent include any figures that show the potential impact, led by demand times quality. There, of course, the either by various strands of Tier 4 or across the subject change in the undergraduate student fees regime is disciplines. There is a feeling on the part of the causing us concern about the possible longer term Russell Group, including institutions like Imperial, impact on the willingness of students already settled that the impact will fall disproportionately on science with significant debt to go into Masters and PhD subjects. Unless Professor Wark has some particular work. To some extent there is an issue that evidence for that, I do not know, though, that it is a maintaining the international recruitment at proven contention. postgraduate level may be very important to us in a Professor Wark: First let me correct a point. Imperial range of ways, including ultimately in institutions College has a large and very successful business such as ours maintaining the academic workforce. school. I should point out that I have the numbers of foreign students broken down across our four major Q114 Dr Huppert: If I can follow on from the point divisions within Imperial: Medicine, Natural Sciences, that Nicola Blackwood made, I was at one of the three Engineering and Business and Humanities. It is excellent universities in my constituency at the end of actually Business and Humanities, which is dominated last week, Anglia Ruskin, and talking to some MBA by Business at Imperial, that has the largest fraction students there. They had particular concerns about the of non-EEA students at 45%. I should also point out ability to work. One of the points that they made was they charge the largest fees, so this is that a very important part of the MBA programme is disproportionately valuable. The medics 16%, Natural working during holidays and working afterwards in Sciences 25%, Engineering 40%. So what you would jobs that are lined up, connected to the MBA conclude from that is all of the areas of our college programme. There was a second point they wanted to would be damaged. I would draw from this the fact raise, but just on that one, is that a concern that you that as the areas become less blue skies and more would particularly have, that leaving aside anything applied, the fraction of non-EEA students goes up. So else the ability to work is integral particularly to that I would say that the damage will fall programme? disproportionately on exactly those parts of science Professor Wark: Yes, I would agree with that 100%. The particle physicists that I teach do not spend much that the Government would most like to enhance. time working in the burgeoning private particle physics industry of Britain. They gain their Q111 Nicola Blackwood: Mr Clappison has already educational bona fides from the work they do in our made the point that there is a sort of self-fulfilling labs. Business students, of course, are enhancing their prophecy with this, that if we do not have the CV by demonstrating their ability to work in the international students coming in, then we will not western business culture, so there is no better way to have the quality of students because we are not do that but to work in the western business culture. producing the quality of students at 16. This was Mr. Underwood: It is clear from the feedback we have raised by earlier witnesses. Do you think that if the got from students to our internal survey that many of number of international students reduced, putting them actually see this as part of a package; that it is aside the fees issue, the number of UK students would about improving their CV not just by having the LSE expand to fill that gap? as part of it, but by having employment, whether Professor Wark: I do not see any causal linkage through internships or through post-study work, with between those two. In fact, I would argue if there is reputable international employers. So what they are a causal linkage it is exactly the opposite. Because doing here is seeing this whole thing as a combined preventing the international students from coming in package. The students are much more focused on the would do grave damage to our leading universities, employability than I think we were 15, 20, 30 years and having fewer leading programmes in your country ago. in an area is not a way to induce young people to go into that area. As has been pointed out, the Q115 Dr Huppert: The other issue that was raised international students we take do not take places away was that for students who have chosen to come to from domestic students. So cutting the international Britain as opposed to another country expecting to be students will not make more places for the domestic able to get post-study work visas, they face a situation ones. I sense a rejoinder is on the way. where the rules have changed while they are here, effectively. Is that a concern of the way that the Q112 Mr Clappison: My point was not quite that. It Government may introduce this scheme; that people was more that it was a sad commentary that we were who have chosen to start a three or four-year degree Ev 16 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

1 February 2011 Professor David Wark FRS and Mr Simeon Underwood should have a reasonable expectation of finishing it Q119 Chair: I am meeting the Foreign Minister of with the same rules they started with? Yemen shortly. He did medicine at Edinburgh, and last Professor Wark: Obviously, Imperial College would week the Prime Minister of Bangladesh was telling not like a situation where we had recruited students me that half her Government studied in this country. on one set of conditions and then halfway through Professor Wark? their degrees those conditions changed. It clearly Professor Wark: Yes, I just wanted to add to that. I would not reflect well on us internationally if those have looked through the figures for Imperial College people go back to their countries and say, “They for where we derive our non-EEA students, and 38% changed the rules on me”. come from the BRIC nations. The Government has Mr. Underwood: Yes, self-evidently that is a source stated that they wish to enhance our links with these of anxiety. There are a number of, if you like, coded countries, these growing and developing economies. messages coming from UKBA officials at public What better way can there be that they come here and presentations to the effect that change will not be we educate the leaders of the future? I should also introduced with immediate effect. But those remain point out that 20% of our non-EEA students come oral and in the meantime what is written is causing a from countries whose GDP per capita is higher than the United Kingdom and, therefore, are unlikely to number of our students a great deal of alarm, even qualify as economic migrants. about what they will be able to do in six or eight Mr. Underwood: If I could just elaborate slightly, months’ time. If I could through your offices ask the within our own survey the main concern about post- sooner the UKBA issues clarification on this point, study work has come from Chinese and Indian the more helpful that will be both to students and to students, and I think that is a particularly significant employers. factor in the broader trade policies of this Government. Q116 Chair: Where will they go if they cannot go to world-class institutions like the LSE and Imperial Q120 Chair: Is there anything further you can do to College? Who are your competitors? Which help the Government with the politics of this? universities will they end up going to? Obviously, you are not politicians, but the Professor Wark: Harvard, Stanford, Caltech, MIT; Government needs to be seen to be controlling need I go on? In my own narrow field, the primary immigration, which they say is out of control or has competition is mostly in the United States. Of course, been out of control. What can you do in order to there are excellent universities on the continent but assist them? they have a very different system. So our primary Professor Wark: I fear that what I say will be competition— considered dodging the question, but as I often tell my students, you cannot give the right answer to the Q117 Chair: Students are not part of the cap in the wrong question. The problem is that the definition of United States, is that right? immigration is being applied inappropriately here. Professor Wark: No. To my knowledge the J1 visas Our students come, they learn, they leave. In the are not capped. evidence there was a point I wanted to warn you about. A study showed that 20% of those students who came in 2004 were still here in 2009. I am Q118 Chair: Mr Underwood, whenever I meet your surprised it is so small because students who come Director he is always in some other country trying here for an undergraduate degree often do so because to drum up more business; this presumably with the it gives them a leg-up on getting a PhD at a premier assistance of the British Foreign Office. For example, UK university. If they came here to do an the High Commission in New Delhi is extremely undergraduate degree and then did a PhD they would helpful to the LSE and other British universities. How still be here in 2009. So I would be very careful about will this affect his ability to get more people to come interpreting that number to mean 20% are somehow here? cheating. Mr. Underwood: It will make it more difficult because I think the primary problem is defining students as what the Director is, of course, doing is a combination immigrants. They are not. They are our colleagues, of both a bit of student recruitment, keeping tabs with they are our customers, and we will only damage our alumni activities, and a certain amount of what ourselves by cutting off our access to them. has been called earlier this morning soft power. There are certain countries around the world—I think the Q121 Chair: What further can institutions like recent examples he could cite would be Brunei, yourselves do in order to make sure students leave at Singapore, Malaysia, Greece where I am afraid to say the end of their course? They will graduate; you will several of the recent Finance Ministers have been LSE give them their certificate; there will be a ceremony. graduates—where actually graduates of the LSE How do you say goodbye in a way that means dominate public life. This is very much part of what goodbye? an LSE or an Imperial is about. Our concern Professor Wark: Well, at Imperial this is mostly done obviously is that that dries up over time. It is not just by handing them their degrees and saying goodbye. about, if you like, the drying up of the students we We do not— recruit or the drying up of alumni donations, but the drying up of influence, whether through the LSE or Q122 Chair: Is there any more information UKBA through Government. can give you or you working in partnership with Mr Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 17

1 February 2011 Professor David Wark FRS and Mr Simeon Underwood

Underwood with UKBA to get rid of the students document is how little use is made of highly trusted when they have done their course? sponsor status within its proposals. Other than the first Mr. Underwood: I think some of this will emerge over one, the sub-degree level 1, it barely features. When the next two to three years as the sponsor management we developed highly trusted sponsor status, and system and the associated e-Borders system come into UKBA did that in close association with the sector, play. There is tremendous potential here to track we were offered a number of, if you like, incentives precisely those areas we know the UKBA is most for it. A number of the proposals in the document worried about. It is worried about students who come could be made more tangible, more effective, if they in through Heathrow but do not actually make it to were linked to highly trusted sponsor status. the LSE or Imperial. It is worried about the students Professor Wark: Yes, Imperial College would who finish but do not actually go home. Now, those strongly support the idea that if there is going to be are in our experience very small numbers, but the an attempt to restrict the numbers it be done by SMS is going to give us the kind of data that will both ensuring that the institutions are bona fide, because enable us to track those things more properly and also we believe that Imperial could easily pass any such on the back of that enable the UKBA to award highly condition. The problem is when instead you try to do trusted sponsor status, as it were, more efficiently than it by making it less appealing to come here to study, it has hitherto. because that will, of course, damage us. Professor Wark: If I could just say I think that one Mr. Underwood: May I elaborate slightly by citing an thing that would be helpful would be to attempt to example from Australia where, as Professor Smith break the perception that there is some sort of said, the Government in 2009Ð10 introduced a number automatic link between being a student and being an of restrictions that were designed precisely to ongoing permanent resident. I do not think that that is eliminate abuse. Then, as a result, they affected the anything like the problem that is perceived, and the sector as a whole and a highly reputable institution right way to correct that is not to keep the people like Monash had to cut 300 academic jobs on the back from coming, it is to correct the misapprehension that of changes in immigration regulation. they stay. Another very reputable university like La Trobe is I would not, however, like to see any regulation planning on the basis of a cut in 7% of its international passed that those who study here cannot remain in the students. We know that because the Vice-Chancellor country afterwards, because we get the opportunity to there is a former pro-director at the LSE. These are pick the cream of the crop and we should not pass live figures and show the damage that indiscriminate that up. policymaking in this area can do precisely to the institutions it is not intended to harm. Q123 Steve McCabe: I just wanted to check if the problem is defining students as immigrants. Do we Q124 Chair: Professor Wark, Mr Underwood, thank need a better definition of student so that we separate you very much for giving evidence today. We may the people you are talking about from the people who write to you with further figures that would be helpful do add to the public perception and demonstrate it by to the inquiry. Thank you very much. going to rather dubious language schools or business Professor Wark: Thank you. schools or whatever? Chair: That concludes the inquiry into student visas. Mr. Underwood: That, as I understand it, is very We have the Minister for Counter-Terrorism now who much behind the ideas about accreditation and highly is giving evidence on the new counter-terrorism trusted sponsor status. One thing that I found proposals. Thank you very much. particularly disappointing about the consultation Ev 18 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

Tuesday 8 February 2011

Members present: Keith Vaz (Chair)

Nicola Blackwood Alun Michael Mr James Clappison Bridget Phillipson Dr Julian Huppert Mark Reckless Steve McCabe Mr David Winnick ______

Examination of Witnesses

Witnesses: Martin Doel, Chief Executive, Association of Colleges, and John Mountford, International Director, Association of Colleges, gave evidence.

Q125 Chair: Order, order. This is the Select students, colleges that basically are abusing the Committee’s second evidence session on the issue of system? student visas. We welcome to the dais Mr Mountford Martin Doel: We receive occasional reports from our and Mr Doel. The interests of Members of this members in that situation. I cannot say that I have Committee are noted in the Register of Members’ received a report lately about a particular college. Interests. Could I add that my wife is a solicitor and a part-time judge and deals with immigration cases. Is Q128 Chair: In the last year or so—so this covers there anyone else who wishes to declare a specialist two Governments—how many complaints have you interest? received about a bogus college? Thank you for giving evidence to us today. I am sure Martin Doel: No more than five, but then I would not you have followed the Committee’s proceedings and expect the Association of Colleges to be a prime focus the evidence that was given last week, so some of the for those complaints being received. Clearly, the questions that Members of the Committee may put to action we would take in those circumstances is to pass you may come directly as a result of evidence that we on the complaint directly to the UK Border Agency. I have received. am aware also that our sister organisation in Scotland Perhaps I could start with you, Mr Doel. The has received some complaints in this regard because Government rightly is very concerned about the issue obviously we have relationships with those of bogus colleges and I am sure you have seen a copy organisations. of the Committee’s report into bogus colleges. Do you think that enough is being done to deal with this issue? Q129 Chair: Do you think abuse is a major issue in Martin Doel: We share the Government’s concern and this sector or do you think we are coming to terms clearly we gave evidence previously— with dealing with it by unannounced inspections and Chair: Sorry, you will need to speak up. the new register of sponsors? Martin Doel: We share that concern, not least in terms Martin Doel: I think it was a very significant problem of the reputation of bona fide colleges that are but one that is now beginning to be addressed. The members of the Association of Colleges, and made scale of the remaining problem is very difficult for me representations over a considerable period about the to establish from where I sit, but as much as the need to protect the title “college” and were, therefore, actuality here, I am also very concerned about the very thankful to the Committee for its reputational issue. I am very grateful latterly for this recommendation in that regard. Work continues to be Committee and also the Government itself making the done with the department towards protecting the title distinction between bona fide colleges, members of “college” but clearly there are difficulties around the the Association of Colleges, and the bogus colleges. ubiquity of that title. But as I say, conversations still That distinction I think has been very helpful indeed continue, particularly around the conjunction of in terms of promoting the reputation of good colleges words, perhaps around general further education delivering a good service to international students. college as a distinguishing facet. We are hopeful that some progress may be made in that regard. Q130 Chair: So you would still like to see the previous Committee’s recommendation to protect the Q126 Chair: In terms of what has happened over the word “college” enshrined in legislation? last year, are you satisfied with the action that is being Martin Doel: I think that would be a very helpful taken by the UK Border Agency to try and find out development indeed and that is a position shared by where these colleges are and close them down? colleges in Northern Ireland, Wales, Scotland and Martin Doel: I think we are increasingly satisfied by England. the determined action being taken by the UKBA and also the increasing focus on institutional level checks Q131 Chair: Thank you. Mr Mountford, you will be that actually will enable that to happen. getting questions, but if you feel you need to chip in at any time please feel free to do so. Q127 Chair: Do you still know of bogus colleges John Mountford: Sure. that exist in this country that are operating, taking in Chair: Mr Clappison has a question for you. Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 19

8 February 2011 Martin Doel and John Mountford

Q132 Mr Clappison: Perhaps I could ask Mr Q137 Alun Michael: That is ﬁne. What is the Mountford if he could just tell us a little bit about his problem? sector, what it does for international students and how John Mountford: Well, that there should be an equal many of them there are studying in publicly funded level of accreditation across the board for anyone who colleges. is sponsoring a student. John Mountford: Indeed. We offer a range of different programmes for international students. The Q138 Alun Michael: Yes, so who should do what? majority would be doing what we deﬁne as level 3 John Mountford: Well, I guess that is something the courses. So that is courses that potentially could lead Government could pick up to make sure that there is on to university or would be vocational programmes a good quality of accreditor or— in their own right. Within the sector we have around Alun Michael: I am sorry— 20,000 to 30,000 international students studying in FE Martin Doel: I think we would have concern that the and sixth form colleges. colleges are—

Q133 Mr Clappison: What type of subjects would Q139 Alun Michael: Sorry, we know what your they be studying typically at level 3? concern is. I am asking you what needs to be done. John Mountford: Well, A-levels obviously are a Martin Doel: I would say I think there needs to be major source for international students coming to our more resource devoted to a more intrusive and more colleges, but not simply A-levels; all vocational proactive accreditation of private training providers— programmes in a whole range of different areas, and not just standard courses in business and computers, Q140 Alun Michael: By whom? which obviously are important, but also in specialist Martin Doel: It would need to be either by Ofsted on areas as well. I think that is a key point that the contract to Government, which would obviously have colleges we represent do have this huge range and a consequences for income to Ofsted in order to do this lot of— because Ofsted is not funded in order to do that Chair: Mr Mountford, you will need to speak up. currently, or some other body would need to be John Mountford: Sorry. We do have this large range established in order to do that. I would find it hard to of curriculum offer for international students and we say that the UK Border Agency would be competent feel it is incredibly important for our members that to do this if they were looking at the quality of the they can continue to offer these courses in areas like education provision within those institutions. air traffic control, for example, in Blackpool College Currently, there is not any independent verification of or fisheries at Grimsby College, and that they are the standards that are being achieved in those allowed to continue to offer these programmes. institutions.

Q134 Alun Michael: There is a comment in your Q141 Alun Michael: Are you suggesting that there submission that you are disappointed that so many should be a single body that does this all? poor private education providers have managed to Martin Doel: I would not be prescriptive, I think, in register as Tier 4 sponsors. What are the problems order to say how this should be done, but I do think with the current system of accreditation? Why is that there needs to be an independent verification. happening? Alun Michael: You are not in a position to be John Mountford: I am happy to pick that up. As prescriptive, but you are in a position to be clearer as Martin’s initial point, we are encouraged that there is to what you are recommending. this increased focus on highly trusted sponsors, there Chair: Mr Doel, I think it would be very helpful if is this increased focus on the quality of— after the session you could just do the Committee a Alun Michael: Sorry, that is not the question. little note as to how you think the system could be John Mountford: Yes, but still we do feel that there improved. Members of the Committee did go to is increased need to— Brighton yesterday and, indeed, in evidence that we Alun Michael: No, I know what you feel. I want to have heard previously there is concern about the know what the problem is. number of bodies that do accreditation. I think what John Mountford: Well, we would feel that the Mr Michael would like to know is do you think there problem in a sense is the accreditation of colleges and are too many bodies involved? Should there be one that in our sector we have— body? What would be very helpful to the Committee is if we had your views as to whether or not that Q135 Alun Michael: Yes, I understand that; that is should happen. what you said. What is the problem? Why is it happening? Q142 Alun Michael: What my question was directed John Mountford: Well, there needs to be a more at was asking for specific proposals rather than a consistent approach to accrediting providers. vague, “Somebody ought to do something about it”. Martin Doel: We have not considered the specific Q136 Alun Michael: Who needs to do what? proposal previously. I would be happy to go away and John Mountford: We have Ofsted in our sector, for make the proposal. All I would say in terms of the example, which is a very robust approach to specific proposal, I would like to see the same accrediting the quality of educational establishments, functionality that applies to colleges be applied to and we hope— those other further education colleges, regular— Ev 20 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

8 February 2011 Martin Doel and John Mountford

Q143 Alun Michael: The devil is in the detail. We John Mountford: Well, China and India certainly are need to know from you how you would do that. the top two, and after those two countries there is Martin Doel: Yes, that is fine, happy to do that. quite a range of different nationalities coming to study in colleges, including places like Korea, Japan, Turkey Q144 Steve McCabe: I do not want to prolong your and also Pakistan. argument over this, but I just want to check. Is that because you want to check the quality of the Q150 Chair: We were very interested in our visit educational output of these establishments or is it yesterday to find out that a number of English because you want it to act as a deterrent for them language schools had offices abroad. Is that also the attracting foreign students? case with those associated with your organisation? Martin Doel: I think both. It serves both purposes. By John Mountford: A lot of colleges would work with establishing the quality of the provision we maintain representatives abroad, so agents who would represent the reputation of further education within the UK and, them and help them to recruit students. Not a huge therefore, the ability to attract students to all number would have a permanent base internationally. institutions but on the basis of a strong reputation. So Chair: I will come back to agents a little later. it achieves that outcome for our colleges by John Mountford: Sure. regulating, if you like, the unregulated sector because it begins to portray a UK offer that is strong and Q151 Mr Winnick: Your organisation obviously has maintained across the world. So, that I think is the an interest in the status quo. Would that be correct? dual benefit of doing it in that way. There is no shame in it. John Mountford: No, I would not necessarily say that Q145 Alun Michael: Sorry, can I just come back to was the case. I think of all the sectors we get hit something you said, the unregulated sector? Isn’t the hardest by bogus providers because our courses can issue between weak accreditation and regulation and get easily confused. So for all the sectors, we are strong accreditation and regulation? Are you saying probably the keenest for the UK to get its house in that there is a part of the sector that is not regulated order, if you like, because it will protect good at all? practitioners like further education colleges and it will Martin Doel: The distinction between regulation and protect genuine students, which must be good for all accreditation is a neat one at points. In terms of of us. regulation, we would say our colleges are regulated by a government agency empowered directly from Q152 Mr Winnick: Your paper that you circulated Government and overseen by this Parliament. I am not refers to international students bringing in around £42 sure that all the other accreditation organisations are million worth of income to the college. £42 million similarly overseen. over what period of time? John Mountford: That would be an annual fee. Q146 Alun Michael: Just one final point. In an earlier answer, you talked about the issue beginning Q153 Mr Winnick: An annual fee. Clearly, any to be addressed. I was under the impression that quite restriction that the Government is indicating, for a lot had been done subsequent to the Committee’s reasons good or otherwise, would adversely affect that income, wouldn’t it? earlier report on this issue. Are you saying that not John Mountford: Yes, if that was a restriction—the enough has been done? number of students who could study. I think we need John Mountford: I think the progress is very to make the point that a lot of those students would encouraging and we hope to see that continued. There also continue on to universities, for example, as well, definitely has been a clampdown on bad practice. so that is just the first stage of their contribution to UK education. Q147 Alun Michael: What bit of that has not gone far enough? Is it just the accreditation issue? Q154 Mr Winnick: What particular concerns do you John Mountford: I think that is the key issue that we have regarding the Government’s consultation paper? need to get a tight grip on the people who are Are you opposed in general or to certain aspects? sponsoring students and that needs consistent John Mountford: The general theme of the paper is standards for all sectors doing sponsoring. encouraging because it seems to be focusing on highly trusted sponsors, the fact that we need to get the Q148 Alun Michael: I think at the end of the day quality of the institution right. But, of course, the first you need to be clear about what it is you are question, for example, was about should we increase recommending and perhaps that can be covered in the the minimum level from level 3 to university level, Chairman’s note. which immediately raises concerns. A lot of our— Chair: If you could send us a little note that would be very helpful. Q155 Chair: Because? John Mountford: Sure. John Mountford: Well, because we represent colleges that specialise in providing programmes at level 3. Q149 Chair: Can I just go back to you, Mr Also, we had some concerns about the suggestion that Mountford? In terms of countries, the origin countries, students should return home before they progress from is it still China, India and Pakistan as the top three one programme to another. We feel that if a student countries? has finished a programme with a highly trusted Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 21

8 February 2011 Martin Doel and John Mountford sponsor there should not be any hindrance to them not come from the college. It would normally come going on to study at another highly trusted sponsor. from the university who is receiving the student.

Q156 Mr Winnick: You think it is unnecessary, Q163 Nicola Blackwood: So when you speak about bureaucratic? other organisations whose educational quality is poor John Mountford: It is an unnecessary bureaucratic and is dragging down your reputation, you are not step and I think already there is a lot of pressure on really talking about pathway courses or international the immigration services to get visas processed, and foundation year courses? to add extra weight on to that I think would be John Mountford: It depends on the provider and it counterproductive. depends on the institution regulating that provider.

Q157 Chair: Mr Doel, you indicated you wished to Q164 Nicola Blackwood: Do you think that you speak? would avoid that problem if there was a consistent Martin Doel: No, only—it has moved on somewhat— regulation such as a stable accreditation system that to endorse the greatest concern from colleges would you felt more confident in and the public would feel be the threat to apply a blanket restriction according to more confident in? level of qualification. The qualifications that colleges John Mountford: I think that would be a very deliver at level 3 and below are recognised as being sensible suggestion, yes. world class. Many countries seek out those qualifications and it would be unnecessary and Q165 Nicola Blackwood: Do you think that all of unhelpful to preclude that level of study within the these organisations, for example, should be linked to country. Given that, highly trusted status provides a a higher educational establishment? way of managing the system more effectively. John Mountford: All the courses going on to a foundation year, to higher education? Q158 Mr Winnick: Are you really telling this Nicola Blackwood: Yes. So pathway courses, they Committee that in the general atmosphere of reducing would go on to higher education. immigration you are more or less the innocent party, John Mountford: By definition they would have to that there is no particular reason why students should be targeted in this way? go on to somebody who was delivering higher John Mountford: All we can say is that the colleges education programmes. we represent are genuine educational establishments. They are accredited by Ofsted, for example. For them Q166 Nicola Blackwood: But they are not to be—to restrict their ability to recruit genuine necessarily linked. You have independent colleges that students who want to come and study at genuine have an agreement perhaps with a university but you educational providers, to make a contribution to UK do not necessarily have that close relationship? college life from a financial and a cultural point of John Mountford: I think there would have to be a view, would be a great shame. very close examination of the quality of those providers. I would not like to say every independent Q159 Nicola Blackwood: Could I just ask what HE provider does not do a good job because I cannot percentage of FE students are international students? possibly say that, but what I would say is that the John Mountford: It is not a huge proportion. It is control of those providers would have to be tight and probably somewhere between 5% and 10%. would have to reflect the same standards that every other provider has to prove. Q160 Nicola Blackwood: Are you expecting that percentage to increase for any reason? Q167 Nicola Blackwood: Do you think at the same John Mountford: Not necessarily, no. time as regulation of the provider there is also this weak link, it seems to me, with the agents and Q161 Nicola Blackwood: What is your view of the representatives and establishing the veracity of those rules governing the international foundation year or agents for colleges in the UK can be very difficult. Do other pathway courses? Do you think that they should you think that there should be an accreditation system be governed and accredited and regulated in the same for agents who recruit international students? way as FE courses? John Mountford: I think everything that we can do John Mountford: I think all courses should be to support our partners domestically or internationally regulated, absolutely. to make sure they are informed, and representing us properly, must be a good thing. But I think one of the Q162 Nicola Blackwood: No, I am not asking that. I advantages of the highly trusted sponsor system is that am saying should they be regulated in the same way? the criteria are extremely tight. So if colleges or Do you think that there is a problem with the way in universities or private providers are working with which the international foundation course and other agents who are not doing a good job, who are not pathway courses are currently being regulated? representing them properly, who are misrepresenting John Mountford: Most foundation year courses them to students, that would be quickly found out would be regulated by the university the students are because they would be falling short of the criteria. So going on to, and we would trust our university one of the advantages of the highly trusted system is partners to do that appropriately. It is a part of the that it makes colleges, universities and schools take educational sector that is not—that regulation would a very active approach to working with people and Ev 22 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

8 February 2011 Martin Doel and John Mountford representing them. If we do not get it right, we are of our members to have better data on international going to be damaged later on. student recruitment at colleges, but we have only just established our own databases in order to do this. So Q168 Nicola Blackwood: But don’t you think it establishing trend data is quite difficult for us to do. I would relieve the burden and the risk if you knew that am not sure that anyone else has really strong data you were engaging with an accredited agent? here. I think that would be a useful thing to drive, to Martin Doel: Additional regulation here in terms of understand what the consequences are for reputation the accreditation of agencies seems to me an entirely and the impression we are creating. helpful thing for colleges to be able to recognise those that they can most immediately trust and use to protect Q172 Nicola Blackwood: How do you gather data their own reputation. So, using in-country resources about reputation and impression? in order to do that seems to me to be an entirely Martin Doel: First of all, I think you can see the data helpful thing. on recruitment, that is an indication about the effectiveness of your recruitment or otherwise and if Q169 Chair: As Nicola Blackwood has said, in a it is falling or it is rising. I think there is also room to sense this could be done quite easily. We have just ask some student surveys of the impression of embassies abroad in places like India and China. They people that do come here—more difficult to reach are still there, I understand. You have British Council those that choose not to come here, self-evidently—to offices there. So the checking out of these agents is understand from the impression of recruited students something that could be done quite easily. how difficult they found it to come to the UK and Martin Doel: “Using” is sometimes an emotive word, what impressions were created about it when they the additional intelligence that would flow to colleges came here. It would be a useful thing to— would be very helpful to me both in a commercial sense and to prevent my own reputation being Q173 Chair: If they do not come here because they damaged by recruiting from a poor agent. So I think perceive there to be obstacles, where would they go? every college would welcome the more information Which other countries are our main competitors as far they can achieve and the more reliable information as students— they can achieve on the agents that may be providing Martin Doel: The main competitors I would identify, students to them. and John may add to this, particularly as many of the Chair: Indeed. students who wish to come to study in the UK obviously welcome the use of the English language, Q170 Mark Reckless: What do you think that the so other English language-based providers impact generally of the proposed changes may be on represent— the reputation of UK education overseas? Martin Doel: John may add more from actually Q174 Chair: For example? having gone to a number of countries here, but I Martin Doel: Australia, Canada, less so the United accompanied a number of outbound visits recently. States because the community colleges I do not think The concern is that it would create the impression that are as focused at international student recruitment as the UK is not open for business in this area and that perhaps some of the universities are in the US, but it is a very difficult place to access training and, particularly Canada and Australia. The Netherlands therefore, that many students may be driven away also is very active in this field. On a different note, from otherwise finding the right course with the right because I think they have a very different vocational provider in this country. So, it is creating an overall system, Germany is a very powerful competitor in impression of the UK that we then will have to work many parts of the world. hard both in terms of the reputation of the quality of what we provide and also in terms of the right student Q175 Chair: Just one other point in answer to being able to find the right course here. something that Nicola Blackwood mentioned, is there more you can do to help UKBA deal with the issue Q171 Mark Reckless: Might it also increase the of bogus colleges or bogus students? Is there more perception that the UK is not a soft touch for people information you can give them? At the event that we really wanting to come here to work but actually held yesterday in Brighton some very interesting purporting to be in study? examples were being given about the way in which Martin Doel: I acknowledge there is a very fine colleges could help; for example, at the end of the balance to be struck here and clearly that balance course notifying UKBA that the course is over. Are needs to be observed at all points. At stages I think it there any practical steps you can take in order to crack can dip into that impression that it is very difficult to down on abuse? come here and to access that training. At other times, John Mountford: I would answer your question by yes, I think we need to have the benefit of strong saying that in our sector we have a lot of good practice control. I think the balance is a tightrope to be walked that could be used as an example of how to manage a here. We are very conscious. college and especially how to manage student The other thing I think would be very helpful in this monitoring, things like attendance, retention, area would be to have more reliable data to indicate achievement and so on, which are critical parts of reliable trends here. We have been conducting surveys what the UKBA are looking to do. So I think from a Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 23

8 February 2011 Martin Doel and John Mountford practical point of view if UKBA wants to spend time Q179 Chair: The total amount of income is how in further education colleges looking at the systems much to the British economy from your perspective? we have in place, which could then be used We know the global amount. throughout the sector, then I think that would be John Mountford: Well, as we said earlier, it is £42 useful. million in fees, but we would have to at least double Martin Doel: If I can take that, I think the association that to capture all the money they have spent in the would see itself having a very strong rule about community and so on. promoting best practice among members, and actually the liaison we have with the UKBA officers now is Q180 Chair: In terms of local jobs? very strong and consistent and we would continue to John Mountford: The number of jobs linked to that? work in that way and look to do that. We have also Chair: In your colleges? introduced an international charter for colleges. This Martin Doel: It would be very hard to make an is, if you like, almost going beyond highly trusted estimate because many of the students would actually status, and colleges subjecting themselves to further join an existing college group rather than being taught examination and peer review, to best practice delivery separately. So to make an estimate of how many jobs around the quality of their provision to international would be lost if we were unable to recruit would be a students. So we would be looking to continue to difficult thing to do. I would be very happy, together support that direction of travel. As to actually whistle- with the note we are going to provide, to give some blowing on poor colleges in the locale, then I think reasonable estimate. If I was to invent a figure today, perhaps, yes, we may think about what we can do to that is exactly what would be done. We have not make members’ voice heard with the UKBA, but I considered that from that perspective, but happy to think the key thing is if they are working with the do so. UKBA around UK highly trusted status, one would Chair: Sure. Just when I said it is near the end, Nicola expect there to be quite close links already with their Blackwood has a quick question to ask you. relevant— Q181 Nicola Blackwood: How many of your Q176 Chair: I think the Government is also students come in on Tier 4 and how many on a student concerned about students coming here and working. I visitor visa, if any? think the Minister, who will give evidence later, talked John Mountford: From February, when it began, to about PhD students working on the tills at Tesco, for October there were 9,000 students issued a Tier 4 example. Is there anything that you can do in order to student visa. So, on that basis, we would estimate help that situation? about 12,000 a year. Martin Doel: We have had conversations with UKBA about what is reasonable to expect an educational Q182 Nicola Blackwood: 12,000 a year on the institution to do in order to check on the whereabouts student visitor visa? of their students. College students are very closely John Mountford: Yes. If we work out that the average tracked in terms of keeping registers on them, which student would stay for one and a half or two years, would not happen in a university. So it is a much more say, on an A-level programme, about 24,000 would be tightly controlled day, but even they will not be able on Tier 4 visas. to tell whether the student is working 15 hours a week rather than 10 hours in the absolute detail. Clearly, Q183 Nicola Blackwood: But how many on the colleges will see themselves as having responsibility. visitor visa, sorry? If it became known to them that a student was abusing John Mountford: I do not have that figure to hand. the terms on which they were here, they would draw it to the attention of the UKBA and they would want Q184 Nicola Blackwood: Could you send that to us? to do that particularly to protect their status as highly John Mountford: Of course, yes. trusted institutions. Q185 Chair: We are eager to complete this inquiry Q177 Chair: Mr Doel and Mr Mountford, thank you as soon as possible. You do not have a date, do you, very much for coming in to give evidence to us today. when the Government intends to publish its results of What would be extremely helpful is if you could its consultation? supply us with that note as to how you think the John Mountford: We have only been given system can improve. approximate— Sorry, one last question. What is the average fee that is paid? I know there are different courses, but on Q186 Chair: What was the approximate date? average how much does one of your international John Mountford: April, I believe. students pay? Chair: Excellent, thank you very much. We look John Mountford: It is about £5,500 per year. forward to receiving your note. Thank you. Could I call to the dais Dominic Scott and Aaron Porter, Q178 Chair: For a year? please? John Mountford: For a year. Ev 24 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

8 February 2011 Dominic Scott and Aaron Porter

Examination of Witnesses

Witnesses: Dominic Scott, Chief Executive, UKCISA, and Aaron Porter, President, NUS, gave evidence.

Q187 Chair: Mr Scott and Mr Porter. Mr Porter, your Q191 Chair: Would you have come across any members are usually trying to get into this building institutions and organisations that promote bogus and here you are. colleges or where you can see abuse in the education Aaron Porter: I have even put a suit on. system? Aaron Porter: Not that I am aware of. However, I Q188 Chair: The Select Committee has invited you think it is important to look at the evidence in terms to come in here. Maybe it is insurance for future years of the number of institutions, particularly at college to have you give evidence to us today, but you are level, that have had their status withdrawn. I think the most welcome. figures are from 12,000 down to 2,300. So I am You have followed the evidence session so far, so you confident that the reforms brought in in April have ensured that the system is a great deal more robust know what we are talking about and I do not have to now. I do think we need to spend some time to give you a long introduction. Can I apologise at the consider what the impacts of those changes have been. start that Members of this Committee are also serving on the Police Bill Committee so they have to dash out Q192 Chair: Tell us if you would about the costs and to vote. They then return after the vote is over. It is benefits of international students. Why do we need all no reflection on the quality of your evidence; it is just these international students coming here? parliamentary business. Perhaps I could start with you, Aaron Porter: I think it is worth restating the fact that Mr Scott. What are the benefits for this country of international student recruitment, rather than overseas students coming to study in the United displacing home recruitment, actually funds the Kingdom? expansion of home recruitment in UK universities, Dominic Scott: I think, if I have time, they are particularly in vulnerable subjects like science, probably fivefold. technology, engineering and maths, but also at Chair: As briefly as possible. postgraduate level where the extortionate fees for Dominic Scott: I will make them headlines. You start international students certainly subsidise the provision with the income, and I think that is very well for home students. So, while there remains to be a cap documented: £6 billion is a modest estimate. The on home recruitment, actually if international student British Council has the most reliable figure broken recruitment were to be reduced it would almost down by sector. Income also means jobs and means certainly lead to an even greater pressure on the BIS employment; the number of people who are employed budget and would probably lead to an even greater cut in the education sector is very substantial indeed. to home student numbers over the coming years. I Perhaps Aaron might like to talk about the benefits think it is also worth restating that the international to British students of having an international global reputation that international students brings to the UK dimension on campuses, which is fundamentally also means that it brings an advantage to the UK important. I spent 20 years before my current job with system, which is important. British Council working overseas, and so reputation is one of the huge benefits to the UK. I know that in Q193 Chair: Is there evidence that having arrived particular British business schools, who have huge here and paid their fees, when it comes to working investment in this area with 4,500 students doing some of these international students are displacing MBAs alone, see that as—in terms of business links British students from getting jobs? around the world—tremendously important. There is Aaron Porter: I think the evidence in this area is a cultural and intellectual dimension, and finally there sketchy and certainly I think it would be important to is the way in which international students maintain get a definitive answer in this area. It is also important some of the less popular courses in the UK: STEM to relate—in regards to post-study work it is a fixed subject courses. So we have an intellectual capital, we time period of two years. So even if the evidence were have an economic investment, and we have foreign to suggest that there was some form of displacement, policy and business links. The whole package comes it at least is time bound, although— together. Q194 Chair: Yes, we will come on to that later, but specifically the 20 hours that they can work— Q189 Chair: Mr Porter, you, of course, studied at Aaron Porter: Part-time work. one of the finest universities in the world. Chair: The part-time work, do you know many PhD Aaron Porter: Great City. students working on the tills at Tesco in Leicester? Aaron Porter: It is true to say that there are some, but Q190 Chair: Can you tell me in your travels you the main reason for this or the two main reasons for must come across quite a lot of students. I am not this, one, in terms of competitiveness to get jobs in talking about the demonstrations, I am talking about and around the university, it is incredibly competitive studying. Have you met many bogus students? and, therefore, there is a challenge in terms of those Aaron Porter: I personally have not come across any students being able to be facilitated by their students that I am aware of that have introduced institution. Indeed, it would not be able to facilitate themselves as being bogus to me, no. all of those students. But also it is a mark of the Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 25

8 February 2011 Dominic Scott and Aaron Porter economic climate in which we are in, which is fiercely with the word “almost”—would meet with NUS competitive. My instinct is that it is the students that opposition? are most organised and most prepared on entry and Aaron Porter: That is not necessarily the case. I want starting a university course, irrespective of whether to see a system where there can be confidence in they are a home student or an international student, counting in and counting out of the students. I do not that tend to get the jobs. I have to say I think that if want to see a system where there is a huge bleeding all students were very well prepared, it is those that of students that come in to study in the country and tend to show innovation that get the employment. then find themselves remaining in the country if that is not what the criteria is for their studying in the UK. Q195 Chair: I will come to you in one second, So I want to see a robust system. I believe that we unless it is specifically on the point? have made significant progress in delivering a robust Dominic Scott: It is. I would just like to remind the system. Committee that on the question of part time jobs, But in terms of student numbers specifically on your international students are not allowed to take any question, I would be in opposition to a system that permanent vacancies. They are only allowed to take saw a reduction in the numbers of students studying casual jobs. So there is no actual conflict or in the UK. I would just perhaps end by saying that I displacement with permanent jobs and permanent am unconvinced by the rationale of the inclusion of vacancies. students, being a transient population that almost in its entirety comes in and out of the country, in net Q196 Mark Reckless: You observed that the migration figures. domestic students are subsidised by international students. Q200 Mr Winnick: To either of you, you know, of Chair: Sorry, Mr Reckless, could you speak up for course, that there is a sort of atmosphere even more the purposes of— so at a time of growing unemployment, the recession Mark Reckless: With domestic students subsidised and what has happened in the country at large, about by international students, you then describe the fees immigration, which was quite clear in the general charged by the presumably willing sellers of the election and what followed. Do you think that students universities to the presumably willing foreign student are being targeted wrongly because of this atmosphere buyers as “extortionate”. On what basis do you use that is developing and will no doubt continue as long that language? as the present economic climate is what it is, Mr Aaron Porter: Obviously, I am not here to get into Scott? a particular debate about tuition fees, but it is worth Dominic Scott: A question to me? I have certainly remarking that in our research the average fee paid by rehearsed in my paper why I think they are a totally the students who responded was £25,000 per year. Of irrelevant target. I think the Financial Times put it course, that is widely variable depending on the level more crisply in an article yesterday when they said, of the course and also the subject studied. An “They eat, they drink, they spend money, they do not international student studying an MBA might well drive down wages or weigh heavily on public expect to pay £50,000 or £60,000 a year. Other services”. I think if we are looking at where real programmes may be as little as £7,000 or £8,000. I public concern is, it is about impact on public am prepared to withdraw the word “extortionate” but services. International students are entirely irrelevant I am just kind of looking at the data. to that debate. So I think I can quite understand the immigration concern, but I think we have the wrong Q197 Mr Winnick: Mr Porter, as far as the National targets and the wrong mechanism here to deal with Union of Students are concerned, Ministers—am I not the concern. right—would almost certainly say you are not in the business as an organisation in wanting to see the Q201 Mr Winnick: Presumably that article was not number of students reduced? written by Migrant Watch. Mr Porter? Aaron Porter: That is correct. I would like to see all Aaron Porter: I have nothing to add on that. I think those that have the ability and aspiration— that is a perfectly adequate answer.

Q198 Mr Winnick: I should have qualiﬁed that: Q202 Mr Winnick: In the NUS paper, on page 4 you students from abroad reduced? say, “Proposals to enforce a return to the country of Aaron Porter: I see no reason why there needs to be origin in order to apply for a different course make no a reduction in student numbers from outside of the EU sense.” We know what the Government intends to do, coming to study in the UK for the reasons that I that if a student wants to go on a different course, believe it adds to the academic community, it adds goes back to his own country, applies to the High to the cultural community, and it thirdly, and perhaps Commission or Embassy as the case may be if it is a importantly for this Committee, helps to fund places Commonwealth country, some would say, “Well, what for home students. is wrong with that? You have come for a particular course. You have completed that course. You want to Q199 Mr Winnick: So, if you like, to be the devil’s go to a different course. Go back and apply and then advocate, any proposals from Government to reduce it will be considered on the basis of evidence of what students coming to study in the United Kingdom you have done in the UK and whether you are a almost certainly—and perhaps I do not have to qualify genuine student or not”. Ev 26 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

8 February 2011 Dominic Scott and Aaron Porter

Aaron Porter: Let me start by recognising the Aaron Porter: Perhaps the UK Independence Party, I importance, as I say, of being able to count in and am not sure. count out student numbers, and so safeguards in order to facilitate that I accept are important. But I do think Q206 Dr Huppert: Because we are struggling to find the lengths of going back to your own country when, them. Can I then turn to this question, which has been for instance, 44% of non-EU students that study at HE touched on several times, of whether students do have been recruited from an FE college, when you count as immigrants? Do you have an idea of how one are talking about the sizeable numbers of progression should define an immigrant for the purpose of issuing either from foundation or other courses in colleges on visas and counting them? to university and then for some students from Dominic Scott: Shall I take that initially? Two points undergraduate level to a masters or to a research on statistics. I think many countries have not used the degree, it seems excessive to force that person to go concept of migrant; they have used the concept of back to their country of origin, not least because of settlement. Australia uses the concept of settlement. problems with timing in terms of when you might be It is permanent settlement that triggers the migration clear about when you can go back—for example, statistics, and that is what they look at. I think it would because of when your final exam might be—and be far more sensible for the UK to look at settlement, trying to book a flight, as many students would have look at ways of breaking links to settlement, and to do. So there is a financial implication. I think there controlling settlement rather than migration. is a logistical implication and we need to find a way to facilitate that student still being able to check in Q207 Chair: That I think is the Government’s aim. officially in this country, especially in instances where Dominic Scott: That I think would be good, but we a student is particularly keen on progressing within have the concept at the moment of migrant, which is this country. Forcing them to go back to their country anyone here for more than 12 months, which brings of origin seems excessive. students into the whole debate, while if we moved it to settlement we could take this transient population Q203 Mr Winnick: Mr Scott, same view? out of that dimension and say it is the settlement that Dominic Scott: Yes. There is certainly an operational is the sensitivity. difficulty that the timescale between getting your examination results, getting your firm offer from your Q208 Dr Huppert: How does Australia measure new sponsor and then having to go home and process that? How does it establish that? Would it be and sit in the queue just would not work for the something that Britain could easily transition to? system. We have a mismatch between a UKBA requirement and educational systems. But, more Dominic Scott: Yes, I think it could. We have looked importantly, what we are saying is that a student who at the Australian system with points in the first place. has been here legitimately and has satisfied and passed I think we could look again at the Australian system their course, is now somehow suspect, has to close whereby what they are looking is, of course, to their bank account, end their lease and encourage migration into the country but, therefore, accommodation, pack all their bags and go home and they control settlement very carefully. I think there are start again at the back of the queue. I think it is not a a lot of lessons to be learnt there. sensible way to progress. They have already shown themselves to be legitimate students and I think we Q209 Chair: Mr Scott, the Australians were ought to enable them to progress through our system following a very similar course as far as students were as generally we have done in the past. concerned a few years ago and now they have changed their mind to see how they can allow more Q204 Mr Winnick: Why do you think Ministers are students in. So is it a good idea to follow what rather keen on doing so if according to both of you it Australia has done? seems illogical for the reasons stated? Dominic Scott: I think Australia has the most Dominic Scott: I quite understand and I think the sophisticated intelligence on student movement of any phrase is a psychological break. I quite understand country in the world. They will be able to tell you that there may be ways in which we do a how many students came last month into the country. psychological break, but to force people and the For the UK, we are quite often six months or a year carbon footprint of sending 50,000 students home behind. Australia has some of the most sophisticated during a peak time in the summer seems totally systems in the world. unproductive. Q210 Chair: You are tempting the Select Committee Q205 Dr Huppert: A couple of questions that follow on an overseas visit. up from some of Mr Winnick’s questions. One is there Dominic Scott: An away day, I think, an away day to is a suggestion that a lot of people we encounter have Australia, excellent idea. an interest in keeping the student numbers going. Chair: We will have to resist; we do not have the Rather remarkably, we have been rather unsuccessful money. at finding any organisations or people, with one exception, who are against the idea of having student Q211 Dr Huppert: Indeed. It is very tempting to go numbers. Are you aware of any other organisations but I think it would not be appropriate. How do they that might take a position that is different from your measure such information? What do they have that we own in that sense? do not that allows them to know those figures? Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 27

8 February 2011 Dominic Scott and Aaron Porter

Dominic Scott: They have a far closer industry and Q216 Alun Michael: One of the problems is at the government relationship, and I think this is possibly a edges. The issue of bogus colleges was touched on fundamental point. At the moment, over the last earlier—leave that on one side. The question has come couple of years, UKBA, Home Office and the up last week from English UK and the British Council education sector have kept a wide berth of each other and again today in evidence of inconsistency of and they have bounced proposals. There has not been standards or the question of whether standards are real joint working. In Australia they have complete consistent. The issue of accreditation of schools close industry and they see it as a government priority. offering courses to international students becomes Their Home Office and their immigration authorities quite crucial in order to make sure that we draw the work with their sector bodies. You see them jointly at line. Do you believe there are problems with the conferences, jointly taking the same line with the current accreditation system? same objectives. Here we seem to have two different Aaron Porter: It is my belief that the fact that it is so objectives at play and we have to find a way of widespread leads to problems. I think we certainly breaking that and getting the two parts to work need to see a rationalisation of the system as it stands. together. Chair: Nicola Blackwood has a quick supplementary. Q217 Alun Michael: Would you agree, Mr Scott? Dominic Scott: I would. At the moment, there are four Q212 Nicola Blackwood: Sorry, just a quick one. I licensed accreditation bodies. I happen to be on the was quite interested in your comments about a Executive Council of one of them; I therefore have an difference between somebody coming in for a short interest. The part of the jigsaw that has been missing time and somebody coming in permanently to settle. is Government oversight of consistency and standards. In this country, what would you consider the point at I think you heard before that the original architecture which settlement occurred? Because if you come in to had Ofsted convening a consistency and standards do a pathway course you are probably here for one board that oversaw the various accreditation bodies. year; then an undergraduate course, that is another That has not met for the last year and so it is a part three years; then a Masters, that is one or two years. of the jigsaw that needs to be brought back in to If you then stayed to do a doctorate, you are moving ensure those consistency and standards. up to nine or 10 years, so at what point does a temporary transient resident become a permanent Q218 Alun Michael: It is surely in everybody’s resident, especially given that if you had that length interest that there should be clarity, for reputational of study you are quite likely to then try and work in reasons as well as for certainty, that the quality of the UK and probably settle? So where would you accreditation is absolutely clear. So could I ask draw the line? perhaps Mr Porter first, should we move to a situation Dominic Scott: Can I make one very brief point and where there is one body that does accreditation at a then give it to Aaron, to say I am no expert in consistent level, albeit with oversight from any settlement; however, I do think that if you have been Government body? in this country for 10 years, spending probably Aaron Porter: My instinct is that that would seem a £15,000 a year on your education, the small numbers more sensible way of doing things. I would need to of people who have made that sort of investment are be convinced why there should be more than one and not actually or should not be of concern to the UK I am not aware of any reasons as to why that is, partly public. because I do not have any operational detail on that. Equally, I have not been made aware of reasons as to Q213 Chair: We do not have figures, though, about why there is more than one. the 10 years? Alun Michael: Thank you. Mr Scott? Dominic Scott: About how many last? Dominic Scott: Can I just repeat a point that has been made in part by other witnesses? The question I am Q214 Nicola Blackwood: How many last for that asking myself is what is the problem or where is the long in our education system? problem. If you go back four years, we had 12,000 Dominic Scott: No, but it is a tiny proportion. We colleges on the DIUS register. At the beginning of the know they last six or seven years and come in points-based system this was reduced— through the— Chair: We can certainly ask the Minister. Q219 Alun Michael: Yes, but forgive me, the Dominic Scott: But up to 10 would be tiny. Committee did a report on the question of bogus colleges and those problems, and a lot has happened Q215 Chair: We can certainly ask the Minister. He since then. Can we just focus on the situation we have is coming in and he ought to know the answer. Mr now where, with the four bodies that have been Porter, do you want to add anything? referred to, there appears to be some evidence and Aaron Porter: I would just add that is still a certainly concerns that the level of accreditation is not succession of time-bound permits to be in the country. consistent. So how do we deal with that, today’s I would echo Dominic insofar as that it is a very small problem? number of people that would last such a small period Dominic Scott: I would still maintain that down to of time. But I think if we are talking about a period 2,300 colleges we have a much tighter system. of more than two years outside of any time-bound Alun Michael: Sure, I understand that. provision, then I think we are in the territory of Dominic Scott: I have seen myself very little evidence settlement rather than migration. of the difficulty of the standards. There is one issue Ev 28 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

8 February 2011 Dominic Scott and Aaron Porter and one issue alone that I have heard, and that is that either within the course or immediately afterwards is a college can lose its accreditation from one agency of growing consideration to all prospective students, and gain it with another. That needs to be plugged, and international students are the same in that regard. but I do not myself know of any other substantial The research that we provided the Committee with problems that have been identified. indicates that in the region of just over 70% of respondents—and the sample size that we have is Q220 Alun Michael: But if it is possible to lose around 8,500 current non-EU students—said that accreditation from one accrediting body and gain it post-study work was of huge importance to them in with another, that seems in itself to be evidence of choosing the UK. In an international marketplace, we inconsistency. consider and the evidence from students is that the Dominic Scott: I entirely agree, but it has only provision for PSW gives a competitive advantage to happened in a small number of cases. the UK over some of our other competitor countries Alun Michael: But it has happened. that, if removed, could potentially seriously damage Dominic Scott: I do not think it necessarily means the UK’s reputation as a destination. you need to amalgamate the two bodies. Q226 Nicola Blackwood: Can I ask how many Q221 Alun Michael: It does not necessarily, but students responded to the survey? wouldn’t you accept that that reputational damage Aaron Porter: 8,500. from however minute a number is something that is causing problems for the student body as a whole? Q227 Nicola Blackwood: As I see it, there are two Dominic Scott: I do not know of any reputational different kinds of post-study work. There is some damage. I know it has given problems to the UKBA post-study work that is required to fulfil the training but I do not know of any international reputational element of your course; so architecture, barrister, and damage. so on. But then there are other courses like English where it is less clear what relationship the post-study Q222 Alun Michael: Well, there is reputational work route has to that qualification. damage that we are hearing in the evidence of this Aaron Porter: Yes, that is right. This is both anecdotal Committee. and from the evidence. Lots of international students Dominic Scott: I have not seen it. simply cite that the opportunity to have worked for a Alun Michael: Mr Porter? fixed period of time in the UK is helpful for them Aaron Porter: Well, I am keen to consider solutions when they go back to their country of origin. That as to how we overcome inconsistency that does helps to make the overall UK offer somewhat more materialise. Again, I am looking for reasons as to why advantageous compared to other competitor countries. there needs to be more than one body and I would be Then you are right to say that in some courses it is keen if people have that thought that they should put vital for the completion and the robustness of the that forward during this process. academic qualification.

Q223 Nicola Blackwood: Just following on slightly Q228 Nicola Blackwood: So do you think one year from that, do you come into contact with students who would be sufﬁcient or do you think two years is have been recruited by agents? necessary? Aaron Porter: From time to time, yes. Aaron Porter: I would be open-minded to looking at one year. Q224 Nicola Blackwood: Do you think that they would feel more secure if they were approached by Q229 Nicola Blackwood: Did you have any an accredited agent? comments, Mr Scott? Aaron Porter: Yes, there are question marks about the Dominic Scott: Firstly, the Migration Advisory validity of that authentication process and I suspect Committee, when it looked at this 18 months ago, some kind of authenticity would be helpful, yes. came up with the phrase that they had seen no evidence of job displacement with British graduates, Q225 Nicola Blackwood: Could I move on to the and I think that still holds true. Secondly, they looked post-study work route and the proposed closure? You at reducing to one year as one of the options and they have expressed this as a particular problem and that concluded that many employers would not wish to you have received comments from students saying take on someone just for one year because it would that this was one of the signiﬁcant reasons why they not be worth training them, recruiting them and came. You have quoted certain courses that require bringing them on, thinking that it was only for such a work experience as part of it. Now, I understand the short time. So I can see one year might be a Government is not planning to entirely remove those compromise but it is not going to be attractive to kinds of courses; they are just going to change the employers and, therefore, it is not going to work study to work ratio slightly. What sort of impact do particularly well for students. you think this is going to have and what sort of evidence do you have to back those concerns up? Q230 Nicola Blackwood: That is what the Aaron Porter: First, in an environment where the competitor countries do. There is another question. relationship between education and employment is There still will be the Tiers 1 and 2 route for people becoming increasingly important, the consideration of to apply for jobs but they have to have a job offer, the opportunity to get some kind of work experience whereas if you want to just stay on the post-study Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 29

8 February 2011 Dominic Scott and Aaron Porter work route, the implication is that you can do outweigh any subsidy that might be linked to a two- anything. Some evidence that has been provided year post-study work. The financial benefits that implies that we are talking about working on the tills international students bring I will not go over, but also at Tesco type work when you have a PhD graduate or in terms of ensuring that the UK is regarded and is a Masters graduate who you would not expect to be able to maintain the level of recruitment. One of the working in that kind of role. Now, that kind of work metrics that is associated with UKHE in terms of experience surely is not beneficial to the student allowing it to describe itself as the second best system returning to their country? of UKHE in the world—unless you are in Oxford or Aaron Porter: I would agree. That kind of experience Cambridge which would, I am sure, describe is something that does not seem that the UK being a themselves as the best system of HE in the world—is destination for that work is being particularly the fact that they cite the number of international distinctive. But it is worth saying that the current students coming in. I consider that to be important in economic conditions are meaning that is probably a terms of allowing us to protect that as a claim for little more prevalent now than it would have been a the UK. few years ago. I hope and I am sure that in years to come the volume of that problem should subside. Q233 Steve McCabe: Isn’t it one of the few legal Dominic Scott: Of course, to control that, one of the subsidies that we could give to industries that we are options that has been discussed is linking post-study rather keen to promote, like pharmaceuticals or work to Tier 2. Now, that again would be a reasonable chemical engineering or green energy, areas where we compromise. The downside of that is there are huge are hoping to as Government policy try and get a numbers of SMEs around the country who would not competitive lead? What we seem to be doing is register themselves as employers under Tier 2 and go closing down the opportunity to attract some of the through the process of getting a CoS, and I have had brightest and best talents who might actually advance substantial evidence given to me recently by the our industry. Association of Business Schools saying Tier 2 is Aaron Porter: I agree. It is worth saying that the skills completely inappropriate for the brightest and the best mix of those that come from outside of the EU happen and it would not work. So I think there is a real to fit quite neatly with where our own home skills difficulty on that. shortages are, particularly in the industries that you have cited. I suspect that if we are serious about Q231 Nicola Blackwood: All right. Could I ask stimulating economic growth and stimulating certain about another issue, which is this on campus working industries we would not want to be simultaneously requirement? I have received comments that this taking away some of the very skills that we need to would not work for several reasons. One is what ensure that those industries remain internationally exactly is a campus, and in the context of Oxford competitive and hopefully grow over the next few University that is quite confusing. The second issue years. is, with a lot of research students, they would frequently do remote consultancy work. If you are Q234 Bridget Phillipson: On the issue of your talking about a STEM student who is backing up a graduates working in Tesco on the tills, presumably a biotech SME or something, that is clearly a positive lot of these people, the international students who relationship. Have you had any response from your students on these issues? come to the UK, are—because of the fees involved— Aaron Porter: I have had similar kind of question often amongst the most affluent in their own countries. marks around the practicability of imposing such a Presumably they would just seek to return home if all requirement. I think that the only way I can imagine they could find to do work-wise was work on the tills. it being overcome is to more broadly relate it to some Is that— benefit to academic study or an education Aaron Porter: That is why. I mean, there are very, environment. But again, those are similarly fluffy but I very few examples of those that have graduated and suspect a little better than simply saying “on campus”, as an example of post-study work are working on the which for obvious reasons for an institution like the tills in Tesco. That’s not to say that those that are OU, even in a city like your own or Cambridge, it is currently studying are indeed doing that work, and I difficult to pin down what the campus is and where think it is important to distinguish that difference. the boundaries are. Dominic Scott: Can I just add on that very briefly that there is a market mechanism here with post-study Q232 Mark Reckless: Mr Porter, you said the post- work, and there is quite extensive reports of students study work route gave UK higher education an who apply for Post-study work, but don’t stay that important competitive advantage against other long, because if they don’t get a good job in the UK, countries. We would not usually support an industry they prefer to go back to Bangalore and Hyderabad, by giving it a subsidy against its foreign competitors. where the opportunities are. So the market is working Why do you think it is any more acceptable for us to there. If there are lots of jobs available, they will prop up higher education by saying, “Oh, well, we contribute to jobs and expertise in the UK economy. will let your graduates stay on and work afterwards If they are not there, they will go home, they move. and compete with our own graduates”? Aaron Porter: I would not consider it a subsidy Q235 Chair: In other words, they are not prepared insofar as we are propping up HE in that the benefits to work at Tesco, they are probably rich enough to that come with this competitive advantage far buy it? Ev 30 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

8 February 2011 Dominic Scott and Aaron Porter

Dominic Scott: Exactly. That is our concern, that it is Dominic Scott: Can I pick up on it, just to say that at that high level of post-graduates that we are what is fascinating is that our foreign policy priority concerned that these measures, especially about countries are precisely the countries where we recruit bringing dependants and dependants working, it is most students. If you look at China, look at India and going to hit that high level of post-graduate look at USA, they are at the top. recruitment. Chair: Are they the top three? Dominic Scott: They will be the top three, so they Q236 Dr Huppert: That is exactly what I was align entirely with our foreign policy objectives and hoping to ask about first, Chair, about dependants, our key strategic partners, so anything that damaged because there are two changes that we have not that clearly has implications far more widely. particularly touched on. One is that students coming Can I make two other brief points on that? for less than 12 months will not be allowed to bring Chair: Could you make it as brief as possible? We any dependants and the other is that their dependants are over-running. would not be allowed to work at all. Do you have any Dominic Scott: I will make it very brief. Institutions comments on those two, what effect they would have are battling with the recent changes. I have figures in Britain, and also on attractiveness for students? here that Oxford University had 100 visa refusals this Aaron Porter: Well, I suspect the initial implications year. Now, these are not dodgy students, so those are relatively obvious, but I will spell them out. It will people had to reapply and go through. We have a make the UK seem a much less welcoming place for system where it is pretty tight on systems. those students. I also think it doesn’t properly consider A final remark, that I received a report from British the nature and the background of lots of those Council India this week to say that the effect of students, particularly on research degrees, who tend to merely these discussions has reduced attendance at be—for obvious reasons—much older and often with their education exhibitions by a third in Hyderabad a family. Now, I accept some of the safeguards that and two-thirds in Bangalore. Already this generic need to be placed around it, but I think this has gone message about the UK beginning to turn its back on far too far and will ultimately preclude many students international students is getting across and doing we wouldn’t just want for financial reasons, we would damage. want for academic reasons in our institutions, not just for their own research, but also to an extent to add to Chair: We will be hearing from the Foreign Office the academic community in our institutions, and to Minister next week on this issue. a small extent, teaching for under-graduate students, particularly in STEM subjects. Q239 Bridget Phillipson: Just to echo that comment, Dominic Scott: Just to add that two in five people in discussions I have had with my local university, doing a PhD in this country are non-EU people. They Sunderland, who recruit a lot of students from China, come for three to four years at least, sometimes at a they have already expressed concern that numbers are minimum. The likelihood of them coming without starting to drop, that students there are concerned, their families is slight. I think we would do huge particularly post-graduate students, so just to echo the damage to the research infrastructure. comment there.

Q237 Dr Huppert: As somebody who used to recruit Q240 Mr Clappison: Just a very brief question on a them, I agree. But can I then just brieﬂy ask to try to completely unrelated subject. It is very brief— capture overall with these changes—because there is [Interruption.] Well, it is tuition fees, in a way. It is an economic dimension, there is an academic to Mr Porter—and thank you for your evidence dimension, there is also a foreign policy dimension— today—but I have recently read reports that you were what effect do you think these changes would have on heckled and attacked at a tuition fees protest, which Britain’s standing internationally? you quite legitimately had been leading. What was all Aaron Porter: It has often been described by previous that about? witnesses that it would move the UK to a description Aaron Porter: Yes, you are right. It was unrelated. of, “We are not open for business” and that that There have been some criticisms that I have not been equally translates to how we might be perceived from radical enough—I suspect that is not an opinion a foreign policy point of view. I love the fact that I shared in this room. There have been some was able to go to a city like Leicester, which was so suggestions that I have been too radical—I’m sure that diverse, and I think that that was great for the country, is an opinion that is probably not shared in this room. that was great for me personally, and I think that was There were a group of protesters that felt that they great for the community in which I was able to live— wanted to show their anger at me at having not run Mr Winnick: And the MP. enough of a robust campaign against the Government. Aaron Porter:—and obviously for a great MP. So I Mr Clappison: It was an internal political thing then? lived in Leicester South. But yes, so for those reasons, Aaron Porter: Yes, that is right. I think that could have a dangerous impact. Mr Clappison: That is ﬁne.

Q238 Mark Reckless: But also in terms of the fact Q241 Mr Winnick: Can I just ask, Mr Porter, there that currently a number of leading people in other were reports in the press that you were subject—and countries have studied in Britain, and historically that perhaps there was no foundation, but it is serious has been another export, do you think the loss of that matter if it was—to racist taunts, that you were subject would have an effect on us? to anti-Semitic insults. Is that true? Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 31

8 February 2011 Dominic Scott and Aaron Porter

Aaron Porter: Some of the comments toward me Chair: Anyway, Mr Porter and Mr Scott, thank you were of an anti-Semitic nature. There were very much for giving evidence today. We will be suggestions that I was a Tory and a Jew, and I can producing our report very shortly. Anything else you conﬁrm that I am neither of those things. want to add, please write to us. Thank you very much. Mr Winnick: Well, one is inexcusable and the other Could I call to the dais Sir Andrew Green and Mr is not. Alper Mehmet.

Examination of Witnesses

Witnesses: Sir Andrew Green KCMG, Chairman, MigrationWatch UK, and Mr Alper Mehmet, Member, Advisory Council, MigrationWatch UK, gave evidence.

Q242 Chair: Sir Andrew, Mr Mehmet, you are old Sir Andrew Green: Exactly right. stagers at this Committee, so you know the format, so Chair:—because you yourself learnt Arabic when I will not go through it again, and you have been you were in Lebanon. sitting in at the evidence. Thank you very much for Sir Andrew Green: I did indeed. coming to give evidence. The Committee always is Chair: You are a very distinguished Arabist, you have very keen to hear from MigrationWatch. Could I start held many diplomatic positions. The Committee went with this issue of when is a migrant not a migrant? yesterday to a language school in Brighton, where we You have heard the evidence. I am sure you have met people from Lebanon and Syria and Saudi Arabia, followed this issue in the press as well. very wealthy individuals who were coming to this Sir Andrew Green: I have indeed, Mr Chairman. We country to learn a language in the country where the are—as one of your Members mentioned—a lone language is spoken. So you did the same thing. voice, but we do speak for, I think, about 77% of Sir Andrew Green: Yes. the population. Chair: So to be very, very clear, MigrationWatch is concerned with issues of abuse, bogus applications, Q243 Chair: Indeed. Specifically on the issue of bogus students and bogus colleges and not genuine students, there is a feeling—and I know this is not a people? definition of this Government, but it is an EU Sir Andrew Green: Exactly, and overstayers. definition—that a student is a migrant if they stay over Chair: Of course, we will come on to overstayers. 12 months. All the evidence that we have received Sir Andrew Green: Absolutely. indicates that a student—what you and I would regard Chair: That is very, very clear. as being a student—is somebody who comes to this Sir Andrew Green: Exactly so. country for a short period of time to complete a Chair: Excellent. course, and when that course is over, unless they stay Sir Andrew Green: To answer your specific question, 10 years, which of course the time limit for applying Chairman, as to the definition of a student, because for indefinite leave, they have to return at the end of that is quite central. their course. Do you think that that is a correct Chair: Yes, please. definition of what a student is? Sir Andrew Green: As you know, the definition of a Sir Andrew Green: Just before I answer that, migrant is someone who is here for a year or more. Chairman, can I make it clear to the Committee that Now, there are three reasons why we have to maintain we do not support cuts in students for the sake of cuts. that. One is that that is the international definition set We do not believe that is the purpose of this exercise. down by the United Nations, and as this is an We would not support it if it was. The whole purpose international issue, it is obvious that you need an of this exercise is to tackle bogus students, because international and agreed criterion. Secondly, there is they add to net migration. Both bogus students and the question of the Government’s credibility. I think genuine students who overstay add to net migration any Government that said, “Oh well, we are just going and if we don’t get net migration down, our to change the definition” would find their credibility population will hit 70 million in 20 years’ time. That out of the door, as over cost of living and is a racing certainty. So I would like to invite the unemployment and so on. Thirdly, and this is quite Committee, as they examine this subject, to bear well crucial, an amazing proportion of migrants, incoming in mind that the only way this very difficult issue can migrants, are in fact students. So if you took them out be addressed is to bear down on every route of of the definition, you would have an enormous impact, migration within that. apparently, on the numbers. Chair: We understand that, but can I just concentrate on— Q245 Chair: But if you break that link between Sir Andrew Green: Yes. someone coming to study, as you have acknowledged, as your whole career has shown, you were able to go Q244 Chair: Within that, you mentioned, quite to a country like Lebanon and learn Arabic, you break rightly, what you were after is bogus students and the link between coming to study—which is what the bogus colleges. witnesses have said to us—and settlement. You would Sir Andrew Green: Yes, exactly. be happy with that? Chair: Not genuine people who wish to come into Sir Andrew Green: We support that, both in terms of this country to study— students and of work visas, that there shouldn’t be an Ev 32 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

8 February 2011 Sir Andrew Green KCMG and Mr Alper Mehmet automatic move on to settlement, but that is a later Minister. He made a speech only a week or so ago, in stage in the process, if you like. If you look at the which he pointed out that something like 90,000 migration point, can I just outline in a couple of students arrived last year to colleges that are not in sentences the broad picture, which is this— the highly trusted sponsor category. So the scope for Chair: We have individual questions. If you could abuse—his words—is enormous. stick to the questions, other colleagues will— Sir Andrew Green: I understand that, but it is directly Q250 Mr Winnick: As for the Government’s relevant to your question just then. proposal that a student, having completed one course, Chair: Okay, if it is about student migrants, as if he wants to do another course should return home— migrants. well, you have heard the evidence, you were sitting at Sir Andrew Green: Yes. We issue about 2 million the back, of those who told us this would be very visas a year, as you know. The International impractical—do I take it that MigrationWatch are in Passenger Survey interviews a small proportion of favour of that? those and it is grossed up. They ask people whether Sir Andrew Green: I don’t have a strong view on that. they are going to come for a year or more. If they say I think that that is very much a matter for discussion yes, they are migrants. That gives you a figure of and negotiation between the academic world and the about 500,000 people arriving every year saying that UKBA. It is not for us. they are migrants. Now, of those—and this is the point—of those, 200,000 are coming because they are Q251 Mr Winnick: As far as e-borders are students, and indeed, last year it was 300,000. So the concerned, what action further do you want to see inflow in terms of students is huge. taken? Sir Andrew Green: Well, as you know—you did a Q246 Chair: Sure. Now, sticking to this point, how report, I believe—it will be four or five years before many of those 200,000 does your organisation believe we have that, and until then, we are wide open. The are bogus students? same speech that I mentioned referred to applications Sir Andrew Green: A significant proportion. in New Delhi, of which 35% included bogus Chair: So over 50%? documents. So they are clearly bogus applications. Sir Andrew Green: Oh no, no. The major difficulty— To answer your question more specifically, I would Chair: What is the kind of rough percentage? have to say this, that the points-based system for Sir Andrew Green: If I had to guess, I would say students is a terrible shambles. It has posed serious 20%, 25%. difficulties for the UKBA, and I suspect also for the Chair: So a quarter of the students coming into this colleges. The reason is this: the reason is that the country are bogus? points-based system has turned on its head the system Sir Andrew Green: No. Either bogus or at risk of that we had before. over-staying, which has the same effect on net migration, of course. Q252 Chair: Which was direct interviews? Chair: Sure. That is very helpful. Sir Andrew Green: Which was—yes, but the key— Sir Andrew Green: You were talking earlier about Chair: This question for the entry clearance officers. Australia. The big difference with Australia is they do Sir Andrew Green: I am coming to that. Exactly, yes. have a system that counts individuals in and Exactly, because the whole issue was—and still individuals out. should be—is this a genuine student, in the sense that Chair: Yes. Well, we are coming to that now. he intends to return home? Now, under the present Sir Andrew Green: You have done a report on that. system, that question is not even addressed, let alone Chair: Yes, we are coming straight to that now, e- tested, and we believe therefore that the points-based borders. system has blown a hole in our immigration system. We saw last year a 30% increase in students in one Q247 Mr Winnick: If there are genuine students, Mr year. We saw in your own question, Mr Chairman, Green, Mr Mehmet, you are quite satisfied about their you asked about— coming to the United Kingdom, as I understand it? Chair: Bangladesh. Sir Andrew Green: I entirely support it. It is in their Sir Andrew Green: Bangladesh. We had a fivefold interests, in our interests. I agree exactly with what increase in applications. Mr Scott said earlier. That is not the issue. Q253 Chair: Yes, but Sir Andrew, surely there will Q248 Mr Winnick: The issue is bogus students? be clever people sitting in the UKBA who would Sir Andrew Green: Bogus students and people who know by February of any given year that the number stay on, and just to make the point that even if the of visas issued to Bangladesh had gone up from 3,000 college is genuine, they can still receive applications to 17,000. You do not have to wait for the end of the from bogus students. year for that, do you? What you are talking about is not a policy change. You are talking about better Q249 Mr Winnick: Did you take the view that as far administration, e-borders, plus a much stricter way in as bogus colleges are concerned, action has been taken which people enter the country. both by the previous Government and the present Sir Andrew Green: Well, we are five years from e- Administration? borders. Certainly the Home Office will know from Sir Andrew Green: Some action has been taken, their management information about this kind of clearly not enough. Well, you will hear from the thing. That is why they had to suspend the issue of Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 33

8 February 2011 Sir Andrew Green KCMG and Mr Alper Mehmet visas in the subcontinent. But just to, if I may, magnitude, there is substantial abuse of the student Chairman, for a second elaborate this— system. That is not in doubt. I don’t think anybody Chair: Yes, but not for too long, because lots of other doubts that, and we are suggesting a way in which colleagues want to come in. They are all going to ask that could be addressed. It is as simple as that. you questions, so if you can make it very, very brief. Sir Andrew Green: Well, I hope I have made it clear Q257 Dr Huppert: Just one last question: your that this is absolutely central, that unless we move to briefing paper on the cost of bogus students, which a situation where in countries “at risk” we have at you refer to in your submission—point 2 on page 3 least the option of an interview— of your submission—has universities, non-compliant Chair: Yes, we are coming on to that. numbers 2,895. Now, I don’t quite understand where those figures come from, but those are figures that you Q254 Dr Huppert: I was very interested to look at have supplied. some of your submissions and the issue of evidence. Sir Andrew Green: They came from the Home Office. There seemed to be a number of things here which Dr Huppert: 2,895. seemed to take a large number of estimates, subtract Mr Clappison: Will you let the witness answer your a few and multiply by some others, which of course question, please? gives huge errors, and a lot of the numbers that you Dr Huppert: 2,895 is a very, very different— give about earnings and so forth and fees differ Chair: Order, Mr Clappison. I am chairing this markedly from what we have had in evidence from meeting. other people who work in the sectors. But can I focus Sir Andrew Green: Well, you see, you are trying to on this issue of numbers of bogus students, because I pick out the odd figure and put it out of context. The think there is general agreement that that is the thing, number you quoted was for higher education—the the only thing, that we are really concerned about at universities, I think you quoted—not for the whole the moment. You said moments ago to the Chair that student body, which is 270,000. Secondly, the roughly 50,000 students were bogus. percentage of university students, the 2% figure that Sir Andrew Green: It could be as many as that, yes. you are talking about, that is a self-declared figure by five universities who were seeking Highly Trusted Q255 Dr Huppert: Your submission comes up with Sponsor status. So let’s not get lost in the detail. You the number of 32,000 based on a paper on your are going down a rabbit hole, frankly. There is a broad website, which cites a Home Office paper, which as issue of serious policy here, and that is what I hope far as I can tell—and I possibly am misreading it— the Committee will address. has different figures in that. Can you explain to me where you get this figure of bogus students and how would we be targeting them? What evidence do you Q258 Chair: Sir Andrew, what I think would be have that there are anything like 50,000 of them? helpful in view of the fact that there is a dispute about Sir Andrew Green: Well, I was asked by the figures is if we could write to you— Chairman for a top-of-the-head estimate and I gave Sir Andrew Green: Yes, sure. him one, and that is out of 270,000, 50,000 is of the Chair:—and you could then write back and comment order of what, 20%. I think that is not an unreasonable on it. estimate. Of course we are getting more information Sir Andrew Green: Absolutely. as we go along and the speech that I have referred to twice already gave us information that was not Q259 Mr Clappison: You mentioned as well the available at the time. There has been Home Office question of overstayers as well as people who came research that has shown a high degree of irregularity here as bogus students in the first place. Do you think in the applications. I don’t think we will get anywhere more could be done to enforce the rules on overstayers by arguing about percentages. What I am really and students whose visas had expired and they talking about is the system and I think I have continue to stay in the country? demonstrated that it is seriously weak. Sir Andrew Green: Well, it is very hard because we don’t know that they have not left, for a start. Even if Q256 Dr Huppert: But I think that numbers do we did know they had not left—and e-borders, Mr matter, because I think this Committee likes to have Chairman, would only tell you that, it wouldn’t tell some evidence. You said 50,000. Your paper here, you where they are. So you come back to the question, your submission to us said 32,000 students in higher unless you check that these people are genuine before education per year. If I look at the university section they come, you have a problem, and a problem on your original paper, it has 3,000. There is a huge multiplied by the problems of removal. We may come discrepancy here, and 3,000 bogus students in higher to that, but the difficulties of removal are enormous. education is a very different order of problem to So our suggestion is to take every measure you can to 32,000 or to 50,000. prevent bogus students or people who intend to Sir Andrew Green: Yes. Well, you are taking different overstay from coming in the first place. paragraphs of it, which will just confuse— Dr Huppert: Well, they refer to each other as source Q260 Mr Clappison: The point you are making there data, so— is the loss of discretion which there was for Sir Andrew Green: I am afraid you will confuse the immigration officers overseas when the points-based Committee and confuse everybody else. What I am system was introduced, because their discretion could saying to you, the essential point is that as an order of be overridden. Ev 34 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

8 February 2011 Sir Andrew Green KCMG and Mr Alper Mehmet

Sir Andrew Green: Another important point: they no officer, that loss of discretion is crucial in determining longer have discretion. I hope that is understood by the future intentions of an individual who is applying. the Committee, Chairman. Chair: Indeed. It is a point we have made many times Q264 Chair: So bringing that back into the system and luckily the head of policy is coming in and would be very positive to tackling the issues of perhaps he can explain why the loss of discretion bogus colleges? occurred. Mr Mehmet: If not in its entirety, certainly to a certain Sir Andrew Green: Good question. extent it would be a huge benefit. Chair: This is a very good point. Q265 Chair: There is nothing wrong with a student Q261 Nicola Blackwood: It is specifically on your in Delhi or Mumbai being able to have a face-to-face point about stopping bogus students at source, and we interview with an ECO rather than arriving at have heard evidence that there can be problems with Heathrow Airport, where they are asked questions— agents which are used by higher and further education they are granted admission, aren’t they, because once institutions, and would you support an accreditation they have their visa, they have their visa. system for agents in particular to try and weed that Sir Andrew Green: Exactly, yes. out at that point? Chair: So this would help the system of shaking out Sir Andrew Green: It would do no harm. But, of who are bogus people. course, they will simply appoint their brother as the Sir Andrew Green: Enormously. agent, so it is a very difficult thing to control. It is Mr Mehmet: Very well put, if I may say so, worth pointing out that every single person in the Chairman. chain, as we now have it, has a financial interest in granting the visa—obviously the institution itself and Q266 Mark Reckless: It seems that you are saying the agent on the ground—and nobody does not. that you are not at all concerned with the numbers of Chair: I think you have made that point. genuine students, if they are not bogus and if there is not a suggestion of inappropriate overstaying. I just Q262 Mark Reckless: The 32,000 figure for students wanted to slightly clarify on this, because if you have overstaying or intending to overstay, I am not sure very large numbers of overseas students here, is it not whether the difference between that and the 50,000 is inevitable, given not least the age group that they because some people come bogus, do not study but come from, that significant numbers of those may then leave before they overstay, certainly either now settle down, get married, have children and so on, and or in writing it would be helpful to clarify that, in as such, there will be at least some movement from reaction to what Dr Huppert said. I note that when the student route into the family route? you talk about 32,000, 25,000 are at private sort of Sir Andrew Green: Yes, there will. The only way in institutions. I am not sure how many of those have which genuine students add to net migration is been cut out when we have moved from 12,000 to through work or family and the order of magnitude 2,300, but I wonder is the way to drive down on the there is quite low. It is of the order of 10%. I won’t visas potentially through the accreditation process or give you a precise number, but it is of the order of do we need to target the visas directly? 10%. So if you had a massive increase in students, you would have a significant increase in net migration, Sir Andrew Green: I will leave the numbers, but— but that is not where the issue is today. Mr Mehmet: Chairman, I should say— Chair: You have been before. If you wish to chip Q267 Nicola Blackwood: Could I just ask you about in, please— the post-study work route? Obviously these Mr Mehmet: I certainly shall, sir. recommendations are to close it entirely. I understand Chair:—do not hesitate. Yes, Andrew. that that is your preference. However, of our main Sir Andrew Green: I will leave aside the numbers. competitors in recruiting international students, We will write about that, if you would like it, but the Australia allow six months, Canada allows you to essential point is you have to deal with this at the apply for a post-study work permit, providing it is less point of application abroad before they arrive, than the duration of the study, the US allows you to otherwise you have lost it. apply for a post-study work permit and Germany also allows you 12 months. I understand France is also Q263 Chair: Before they arrive? considering such a route. Do you think that this is Sir Andrew Green: Before they arrive, otherwise you going to cause us a problem in recruiting the best have lost it. Once they are here— students and maintaining the standard of our Mr Mehmet: Perhaps I could comment on that, sir. educational institutions in this country? Chair: Yes, Mr Mehmet. Sir Andrew Green: I think the first thing to say is that Mr Mehmet: The points-based system introduced the we have 20% unemployment among British system whereby you acquired a certain number of graduates, and frankly, I think that almost makes the points if you had a letter of acceptance. case by itself. Secondly, the Migration Advisory Chair: Indeed. I think we understand that, as we Committee described our present system as among the wrote the report on this. We know the points. Tell us most generous in the world. Thirdly, we have done what is wrong with it. some informal inquiries which suggest that the Mr Mehmet: It was simply to emphasise the point that number of foreign students applying for each place is as a former immigration officer and entry clearance of the order of eight or ten times the number of places, Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 35

8 February 2011 Sir Andrew Green KCMG and Mr Alper Mehmet so we are not short of applications. I suppose you Sir Andrew Green: And fourthly, if I may, the points- could argue that we get slightly less good ones, based system is a seriously weak system that has perhaps. It is hard to say. It would surprise me if there turned the process on its head. was any problem with either Oxford or Cambridge in Chair: Thank you very much. recruiting foreign graduates or under-graduates. Mr Mehmet: Might I add one point, sir? Mr Mehmet: Might I give some specific figures on Chair: Yes. that, sir. As a result of our very quick research, we Mr Mehmet: In 1980, I was an entry clearance officer found that Bristol University, for example, has already in Nigeria, when we introduced full fees for overseas received 122 applications for their BA in architecture students, and everything I have heard this afternoon next year for 16 places; for chemical engineering, about being closed for business and being unwelcome there are 71 applications for 15 places, and for was used at that time. There were 88,000 foreign electrical engineering, 70 applicants for 21 places. students in this country at that time, going up to the Chair: But these are on the current rules. present number. Mr Mehmet: Under the current rules. Chair: Yes, that is very, very helpful. Q270 Mr Winnick: The Chair asked you a number of questions. In conclusion, just one to reaffirm, that Q268 Nicola Blackwood: Do you accept that for you are not yourself or the organisation is not some courses, some form of post-study training is necessarily in favour, in fact you are neutral, on necessary in order to gain the qualification? whether students should have to go back if they want Sir Andrew Green: Oh, yes. to start a new course? Sir Andrew Green: I think that is not a matter for us. Q269 Chair: You are not against that? It is a very detailed point and needs to be worked out Sir Andrew Green: No, no. I mean, that is really for with the educational establishment. the educational people to talk about, it is not for us. We certainly wouldn’t oppose that. Q271 Mr Winnick: But it is not part of your policy Chair: Sir Andrew, Mr Mehmet, thank you very in any way? much for coming in. Let me just be clear, so you are Sir Andrew Green: It is not for us to say, no. not misquoted: what you are against are bogus Mr Winnick: Thank you very much. students, not genuine students coming into this Chair: Sir Andrew and Mr Mehmet, thank you so country to study. Secondly, you would like to see a much for coming. I am sure we will call on your break in the cycle between somebody coming to study services again in the future. Thank you. and someone staying permanently? Order, could I call the Minister and his officials to the Sir Andrew Green: It should not be semi-automatic, dais, please. yes. Chair: Thirdly, that you yourself value the fact that people might want to come to England to learn English?

Examination of Witnesses Witnesses: Damian Green MP, Minister of State for Immigration, Home Ofﬁce, Glyn Williams, Director of Immigration Policy, and Jeremy Oppenheim, Regional Director, National Lead Temporary Migration, gave evidence.

Q272 Chair: Minister, Mr Oppenheim, Mr Williams, happen, but do you understand why people are saying can I first of all start by apologising for keeping you this in the academic world? waiting. We thought we were making rapid progress Damian Green: Not if they read the consultation and then it suddenly slowed down. Would you like to carefully. It is perfectly clear from everything I have just introduce your officials for the purposes of the said in speeches and, indeed, in private meetings with record? many of the figures who you will have been having in Damian Green: On my left is Glyn Williams, who is front of the Committee that of course Britain is open the Director of Immigration Policy, and on my right for business. Of course we recognise that the is Jeremy Oppenheim, who leads for us on temporary migration, which obviously includes students. international aspects of our universities in particular are extremely important, both to them and to us as a Q273 Chair: Thank you for coming. The Committee country, and we want to continue to attract at least our has heard a great deal of evidence, compelling fair share, if not more than our fair share, of the evidence, which raises concerns about the brightest and the best to come to this country, and Government’s proposals over student visas. Members nothing we are seeking to do in terms of eliminating of the Committee will ask about the particular details abuse of the student visa—which has been massively of this, but can you answer this question about the abused over the past few years—or as part of the overall direction of Government policy. There is a wider policy of reducing net migration to sustainable feeling that Britain will be closed for business as a levels will have any damaging effect on our great result of the Government’s proposals on student visas. academic institutions. You presumably do not agree that that is going to Ev 36 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

8 February 2011 Damian Green MP, Glyn Williams and Jeremy Oppenheim

Q274 Chair: Because I think there is unity, or there element in the consultation is that we say, “If you are appears to be unity, that everybody in this room—or not a highly trusted sponsor, you shouldn’t be allowed at least as far as the Committee is concerned—and to bring people in below degree level”. our witnesses are all against bogus colleges and bogus Chair: Sure. students. What are sought are genuine people coming Damian Green: As it happens, we have offered highly to study in the United Kingdom. So is the thrust of trusted sponsorship to every university as a matter of your policy directed against abuse and bogus students course, and I think three of them haven’t taken it up and bogus colleges, or is it also going to affect for their reasons. But we assume for the moment that genuine students who have been coming into this all universities are highly trusted. country? Damian Green: The thrust of the policy is to Q278 Chair: But that is how many universities? eliminate abuses in the system, precisely. Damian Green: It is about 124. Chair: That is it? Damian Green: I think the biggest misunderstanding Q279 Chair: You have found out in the last year, that I have found—and I have obviously seen since you have been a Minister, 235 educational transcripts of last week’s evidence, but I haven’t heard establishments where the Government has had to take this morning’s evidence—is that people think that the action against them, basically bogus colleges; is that vast bulk of student visas are people coming to right? university and there is a small amount happening Damian Green: That would be slightly unfair, in that elsewhere, and that’s just factually wrong. 40% of they have had their licences revoked or suspended. those who come with a student visa are not studying at Now, if you have had a licence, it is possible to get it universities, they are studying courses at below degree back, if you address the problem. So 58 now is the level and a subset of that particularly who are private latest number I have seen of licences that have been sector colleges are—they are where the problem lies, revoked, but Glyn will have all the figures in detail. frankly— Glyn Williams: Well, firstly universities, there are 155 Chair: Indeed. on the sponsor register. Damian Green:—because very few of them are regulated by Ofsted, very few of them are highly Q280 Chair: Right, but I am interested in the bogus trusted sponsors. I think the key number—if I say colleges. How many bogus colleges have we found nothing else that sticks with the Committee this since 7 May last year? morning, this is the key number—is that in the last Damian Green: It is 58 over the past 12 months. year we had 91,000 visas issued to that particular sub- Glyn Williams: We have revoked the licences of 58 sector, so we are not talking about a small number, and we have suspended the licences of another 240 we are talking about a huge number, where we think or so. the potential abuse is likely to lie. Chair: Sorry, you are mumbling, Mr Williams. I think we need it for the record. Q275 Chair: So it is about abuse and bogus colleges Glyn Williams: Apart from the 58 that we revoked, that we are concerned with, and you would be upset we also suspended the licences of 248. if you found that a genuine student coming to study Jeremy Oppenheim: 237. in the United Kingdom, whether it is at degree level, or sub-degree level on a pathway to a degree level, Q281 Chair: But we cannot call them bogus was prevented from coming here as a result of the colleges, but we can call the 58 bogus colleges. That Government’s proposals? It is not your intention? is right, is it, because if we are talking about abuse in Damian Green: As long as the genuine student was bogus colleges, we must know what they are. How coming here to study and wasn’t using the student visa many have we closed down? to do some studying, while being more interested in a Damian Green: 58. work visa. So there are obviously gradations around Chair: 58, in the last year. the edge. Damian Green: And of the 237 that have been Chair: Of course. suspended, it is of course possible that some or all of Damian Green: But the bulk in terms of the sheer them will end up having their licences revoked, so numbers will come, I suspect, from people who are that figure will go up. It is a continuous process. not studying genuine courses at genuine institutions. Q282 Chair: You think there are many more floating Q276 Chair: Excellent. Now, I wrote to you last around, because you keep referring to what you found week in preparation for this session and the under the woodwork. I think you said that in your Committee have just seen a copy of your reply. It interview with Andrew Neil on the Daily Politics appears that you now say that there are 2,313 sponsors programme, “It is amazing what you find under the on the Tier 4 register. That is correct? woodwork”. Damian Green: Yes. Damian Green: I think it was under the—I said I had turned over stones and found unpleasant things. Q277 Chair: So students coming to those Chair: Right, sorry. universities or institutions, they are okay, they are Damian Green: Some of those unpleasant things are genuine, are they? illustrative of colleges where the college is based in Damian Green: Well, the distinction I would draw London and we found all the students working in west would be between highly trusted sponsors and not Wales. We found a college that had two lecturers for highly trusted sponsors and, if you like, the key 940 students and so on. I won’t go into that. Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 37

8 February 2011 Damian Green MP, Glyn Williams and Jeremy Oppenheim

Chair: The Committee welcomes what you have on with our enforcement, then we will work through done. This is specifically on bogus colleges, the system. colleagues. Q286 Mr Clappison: Just a quick question. Are you Q283 Dr Huppert: Thank you, and I think all of us able to say how long some of these bogus colleges are very concerned about the bogus colleges. I am have been in existence? just trying to understand, Minister, your allocation of Chair: Mr Clappison, could you repeat that, resources, because a lot of this consultation does not because— seem to be particularly targeted at bogus colleges. It Mr Clappison: Yes. These bogus colleges, how long seems to be targeted at all students. Would it not be have they been in existence or were they springing up more sensible to dedicate more of UKBA’s efforts to all the time and closing down, or have some of them finding these bogus colleges which behave as poorly been running for years with bogus students? as you say and making sure that we get rid of them, Jeremy Oppenheim: Before the points-based system, rather than taking a more sort of broadbrush there were 4,500 colleges in total on the old DIUS approach? register. We reduced that to the current just over Damian Green: Well, I don’t agree that we are not 2,300. Some of those establishments, bogus or making huge efforts to close the bogus colleges, and otherwise, have been going a long time. Some are the figures I have just quoted show that activity is new. But very few are new since the points-based intense and accelerating. The reason why the system came in because we are incredibly careful consultation is so wide-ranging is, if you like, about who we accredit and who we then allow to bring precisely because the student visa under Tier 4 of the in students from outside the European— points-based system is precisely that. It is a student visa that allows you to come in to read post-graduate Q287 Mr Clappison: But of the 58, some of those physics at Imperial or to do a course that you or I had been going for some time? might not recognise as an academic course, Jeremy Oppenheim: Yes, some of them had been particularly if you are in west Wales and the course is going for some time. in London. So we have to deal with the whole issue of the fact that the student visa itself has been Q288 Nicola Blackwood: You mentioned that you undifferentiated, if you like, or insufficiently were very careful about accreditation, but we have differentiated, and if you want—as I hear the received evidence that the number of accreditation Chairman and the whole Committee want to do, as bodies can cause confusion and that a college which well as Ministers—take a more intelligent approach to is refused accreditation by one body can then gain who is coming here under the student visa, then you accreditation by another, and that not only is this have to look at the whole thing and decide what is difficult for colleges, who feel their reputation is under working and what is not working. question, but also it leaves a loophole for bogus colleges. Do you have any intention of reforming the accreditation bodies? Q284 Steve McCabe: I just wondered if we could Damian Green: have some idea what proportion of the total sector 58 Yes, absolutely. Accreditation is one of the things we have been consulting on and it is one colleges amounts to? of the areas where we have had very sort of positive Chair: What percentage is 58 of the number of feedback, and I know you have heard evidence from colleges? others saying that the accreditation does need sorting Damian Green: Well, of the particular sub-sector, out and I completely agree. When we bring forward which are the private funded colleges, there are 744, proposals as a result of the consultation, accreditation so I mean— will play a part in that. I agree with all those who Steve McCabe: I am trying to do the math. have told you that the accreditation system is a mess. Chair: To help those of us who cannot, what is the math, Mr McCabe? Q289 Nicola Blackwood: There is a second loophole Steve McCabe: I am just working it out, Chairman. I that we have observed, or we have heard about, which will come back. is agents abroad who recruit international students, Damian Green: Well, by definition, there are 744 that and you can have some very genuine, effective agents have a licence now, so the 58 would be on top of that. and some not so much, and there has been a Chair: Dr Huppert is the scientist. He tells me it is— recommendation of accrediting those agents with British Council or embassy officials in country. What Q285 Steve McCabe: Minister, does that indicate that is your opinion about that? the problem is not quite as great as you think, or does Damian Green: It is an interesting idea. It does it indicate that the Department are very slow in getting slightly entail spreading the tentacles of the British round to dealing with it? state and the British regulatory system across the Damian Green: I don’t think it indicates either, really. world in a way that might be expensive and I think the problem is clearly great, and there are impractical and not necessarily welcome everywhere. clearly colleges that were and always have been But the distinction is a good one. I was in India a few completely bogus. There will be, I am sure, colleges months ago talking to respectable education agents out there that are doing things that you and I and the and they were urging us, they said, “Of course there Committee would disapprove of, but may be doing are huge scams going on, and of course, you know, bits of proper academic work as well. So as we work many of them are run by local agents, and please drive Ev 38 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

8 February 2011 Damian Green MP, Glyn Williams and Jeremy Oppenheim them out of business”. Jeremy, you know more of the confidence in had been given permission to come to detail of this and of things that are feasible. this country. Jeremy Oppenheim: Yes, of course. One of the things that many reputable organisations do—and the Q293 Chair: Finally, perhaps you can help us on universities do this a great deal—is employ the agents this, Mr Oppenheim, before we move past bogus directly, so they employ the agents as UK employees colleges. You were in your post when the number of who are then posted out abroad, and that is very visas from Bangladesh went up from 3,000 in 2008 to reassuring and very successful. 17,303 in 2009. How was it possible for this huge increase to occur during a year? Surely someone at Q290 Chair: What I think Ms Blackwood is asking UKBA would have realised that the number of visas is: with the agents who are not part of the offices of going to Bangladesh had increased almost 50%, well British universities, should we have some regulation? more than 50%—my maths, as I say, is not Jeremy Oppenheim: There are two things I might say. particularly good—over a year. The point that others Firstly, regulating outside the United Kingdom is have made to this Committee is that UKBA has not extremely difficult to do. Employment in the United really been in control of the administration. You Kingdom is easier. should have spotted this, shouldn’t you? Secondly, the British Council does help in those areas, Jeremy Oppenheim: We did spot it. We spotted it and we need to exploit the British Council’s options quite early and we did things about it, so we are— and opportunities more than we perhaps do at the Chair: But 17,000 visas were issued. How is that moment. early? Jeremy Oppenheim: We spotted it in Bangladesh, Q291 Chair: This is really a question for Mr Nepal, India and southern China, and we took action Oppenheim and Mr Williams, because we cannot hold in each of those places to do something about it. you, Minister, responsible for the points-based system; Chair: Mr Oppenheim, isn’t that after the visas were that was the predecessor Government. However, one issued? Surely you would have known something like of the points made by MigrationWatch that I tend to this by February. agree with is the fact that all discretion was taken Jeremy Oppenheim: In some cases, it was after the away—I know you might find that hard to believe, visa was issued, and in some cases—many, actually— Minister—from entry clearance officers, and therefore it was well before they were issued. Our missions once you get the points under the points-based system, abroad let us know about those issues and we took the visa is granted. Isn’t the right way to deal with this action to limit quite significantly the number of visas an administrative change that would allow an ECO or we were able to issue, certainly in southern China— an ECM to interview the applicant abroad, thus Chair: Do you mean it could have been more than dealing with this problem before the bogus student 17,000? comes into the country? Mr Williams, you were the Jeremy Oppenheim: No, I am not saying it could Head of Policy under the previous Government, I have been more than 17,000, Chairman. What I am understand. saying is that as soon as we saw those numbers—and Glyn Williams: Yes, and I was there when the we tracked them every single week—we took action previous system was in operation too, and we were to do something about it. often heavily criticised by the education sector and by Chair: Mr McCabe has a final point on bogus the Independent Monitor for Entry Clearance refusals colleges. over some of the refusals that we were making on the basis of discretion, and often the education providers Q294 Steve McCabe: I should say, Minister, this would say that the entry clearance officer was incident happened two years ago, so I am not trying substituting his judgment for their academic judgment to pin it on you. I wonder who is responsible for and was attempting to judge whether somebody was dealing with the bogus students? I say that because capable of following a course and genuinely intended we were sent some information by a Mr Lawrence to come to the UK to study. The agreed system that Eke from Hove English Language School yesterday, was put in its place was that that was the job of the who claimed that he tried to report four bogus students education providers and they would choose their own from Belarus, and he phoned the Nationality Unit of students, and we would have a series of objective tests Sussex Police, who told him that it was not their going to the immigration aspect of it. jurisdiction and to contact the Home Office, who told him to contact the UKBA. When he contacted the Q292 Chair: Basically, you would not consider UKBA, they said that since they had already entered letting the ECO look at the student himself or herself? the UK and had not registered at the school, it was Glyn Williams: It does not fit within the current not the college’s responsibility but that he should system that we have. contact the Home Office. Presumably, your officials Mr Clappison: The Committee went to Nigeria in are taking some steps to try to make sure that as well 2007. This point was raised to us by entry clearance as closing a relatively small number of bogus colleges, officers in Nigeria, and the point that they put was someone is taking responsibility for bogus students that they knew far more about the local circumstances once they are identified. and conditions, and they sometimes knew more than Damian Green: Exactly. I think that tale is illustrative the universities or educational institutions themselves of the sort of thing that has gone on. did. They said there were clear examples, in their experience, where people whom they did not have Q295 Steve McCabe: What is happening now? Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 39

8 February 2011 Damian Green MP, Glyn Williams and Jeremy Oppenheim

Damian Green: We now have much better checks. bogus because they do not show up in the statistics We have increasing numbers of biometric residence until you find them. permits so, if you come here to do a course, it is much I am surprised you say that about the consultation. I easier to know who you are if you try to interact with do not agree. It is not meant to be that we are going the benefit system or if you try to work. Employers to make it less welcoming to come here. The whole know that you have to produce a document that will thrust of the consultation is, precisely because we be able to be checked that it belongs to you, and all want more than our fair share of the brightest and that kind of thing. The system has been tightened up the best, we need to have a system that is not so all- since that is a not untypical example of the sort of encompassing that people can use it as a loophole. thing that is happening. If you have an entirely That has been the problem. The biggest single unregulated sector, where you not only have bogus loophole in the immigration system has been the colleges but you also have bogus individuals trying student visa system, and what we want to do is drive to exploit— out all the things that lead to the loopholes. People concentrate on bogus colleges because that is where Q296 Steve McCabe: Isn’t this about the agencies most things are, but it does also entail asking not accepting any responsibility? It sounds like pass questions about people who come here. For instance, the parcel. we are consulting on whether people should be able Damian Green: Absolutely. It is not for me to to bring their dependants with them as a right, and we comment particularly on what happened under the have looked at what other countries offer, and some previous Administration—otherwise we will get of the things that people have complained about, the partisan, which is not the point—but absolutely. If post-study work route and so on— people come from overseas to this country, it is the responsibility of the UK Border Agency to check that Q299 Mr Winnick: In your busy life, Minister, I do they are genuine and they are who they say they are not know if you have seen the advertisement in “The and they have the qualifications. House” magazine, which is an open letter signed by Chair: We will move on to overstayers. We will have UK business schools. None of them could be a quick question from Ms Phillipson, and then we classified as bogus colleges: Cranfield School of must move on to other areas. Management, Birmingham Business School, Bristol Business School, Imperial College Business School, Q297 Bridget Phillipson: Given the likely reduction and so on. They are very critical of some aspects of in staffing levels at the UKBA, do you still feel that what you are intending. I very briefly quote; they say, where reports are received, it will be possible for “While supporting your objective of ending current those to be acted on thoroughly? abuses, we disagree profoundly with the proposal that Damian Green: Yes, for two reasons. In the course of all overseas students, regardless of level or course of study, should lose the opportunity to apply for work the next few years, we will be moving many more of in the UK and instead be required to leave as soon our basic systems onto something that we would all as they have completed their course.” Have you seen recognise as modern technology. Essentially, the their letter? whole computer revolution has come late to the Damian Green: I have seen something similar. I UKBA, but it is now happening. Also, we will get cannot remember if I saw it in “The House” magazine, smarter at differentiating. That is what a lot of this but obviously they have responded to the consultation, whole student consultation is about. or the individual institutions have. Post-study work is, I know, one of the interesting areas. It is one of the Q298 Mark Reckless: Minister, I detect something reasons you have consultations, as you know. We of a dichotomy between what we see in the propose to say, “Let’s scrap it altogether”. Other consultation paper, which has a number of questions people have said, “No, you must keep it altogether”, but there does seem to be a common theme, at least and one of the interesting aspects of this is to me, of decreasing numbers by making coming to international comparisons, because if we are looking the UK less attractive for overseas students, and what at what we do and how we make ourselves attractive, you appear to say today in terms that this is focused we need to look at what other countries do. The on bogus colleges and bogus students. Is there not Americans do not offer anything like as generous an actually a genuine trade-off in that there are some offering as that. They offer a small one-year extension students coming perfectly reasonably to some colleges directly related to the student’s area of study, so that but they are studying part time and working as well? is nothing like as generous. The Australians offer an A fair amount of them stay on afterwards. A lot of 18-month visa for temporary and skilled jobs, so those them have children and get married, and not very would be jobs available under Tier 2 in our system. I many go back home. Even if there is not an issue of know that some of the evidence you have heard says being bogus, may we not want to restrict people that the French are now offering a three-year coming in order to reduce the amount of net extension. What the French are offering is a new skills immigration from this source? and talent visa, which is not open just to those who Damian Green: I think one of the interesting things study in France. It sounds more to me like our new is that if all you do is concentrate on the overtly Tier 1—our exceptionals visa—so we are, if you like, bogus, you actually have quite a significant fall in out of line in just saying that you can come here on numbers. By definition, it is quite difficult to say any kind of student visa and you have an absolute exactly how many people are here illegally or being right to look for work for two years afterwards. Ev 40 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

8 February 2011 Damian Green MP, Glyn Williams and Jeremy Oppenheim

We have discovered that there are a significant number before this Committee so far, including, to be frank, of those who have finished their studying who are then MigrationWatch when they talked about dealing with not going into the sort of skilled jobs that I imagine the abuses of the system—are concerned about graduates of all those distinguished business schools genuine students being affected by your proposals. Do would go to, but more than 50% of them are going to you think they are wrong? unskilled jobs, so it is clear that has become another Damian Green: Whenever you have change, people of the loopholes. are concerned. One of the reasons we have a consultation before we announce is precisely so we Q300 Mr Winnick: Do I take it from that answer can address those concerns. that the response will be “no” to what they are objecting to? Q304 Mr Winnick: Just a final question, are you Damian Green: I think what they are arguing for is telling us, Minister, that genuine students who want to that we should not change the system at all. study in the United Kingdom should have no more Mr Winnick: They make it clear they are against difficulty than previously? abuses. Damian Green: Genuine students who are coming to Damian Green: It is not an abuse. That is the study should have no more difficulties. interesting thing. I think this is where, as it were, the Chair: Excellent. subtleties come in. There is bogus and there is not bogus, but there is a range in between, and nobody is Q305 Nicola Blackwood: Could I just take us back abusing the current system if they finish an academic to the post-study work route for a moment? It seems course and sit in this country for two years looking that we are looking at two poles: either keeping it for work or taking unskilled work. That is fine; that is exactly as it is now, in which anything is permitted, allowed in the current system— or closing it entirely. We have received evidence that some form of post-study work is a recruitment tool so Q301 Chair: These are the graduates who are that people can go back to their own countries having working on the tills at Tesco that you keep a bit of a CV line. We have also received evidence mentioning, the PhDs that you have discovered? that with some courses you need to do a period of Damian Green: I think one of things we need to post-study training in order to properly qualify; for address when we announce what is coming out of the example, architecture or law and other courses such consultation is whether that is good for the British as those, and this would prevent that entirely. I wonder labour market and good for the British economy. It if you could comment on those particular aspects. seems to me that there are quite strong arguments to Damian Green: say that is not what we want to use the student visa As you say, we have received a lot system for. That is probably not what these colleges of responses to the consultation on this issue. It is think they are educating people for. clearly one of the important issues. Chair: 31,000. Q302 Mr Winnick: What would you say, however, Damian Green: Yes, but not specifically on this issue. Minister, to the feeling, accusation—call it what you We have had 31,000 altogether, many of them from like—that in the general desire to reduce immigration, individuals, so I am glad we had a consultation. As in the atmosphere of the present moment and suchlike, we are sifting through those, we will develop the that overseas students are being caught in the firing policy. You are tempting me down the line of line? announcing what the policy will be, which the Home Damian Green: I do not think that is true. The Secretary will announce in some weeks’ time, but I simplistic thing of, “More immigration is better” or, do not think that now is the time to do that. Not least “All immigration should be stopped altogether”, because as the Chairman says, we have had 31,000 obviously we need to steer a sensible course between consultations, we need to give them all a fair look at those two extremes. first before we make our final decision. Mr Winnick: Leaving aside the general position, whether immigration should be increased or not, what Q306 Alun Michael: Can I just ask about the impact I am saying to you is that in the general desire of the of biometric residence permits? Won’t that be Government to demonstrate that immigration is being effective in ensuring that we know precisely whether cut, students are in the firing line in the sense that it students have left as they are supposed to do? is going to become much more difficult to study in Jeremy Oppenheim: No, is the simple answer. the United Kingdom. Biometric residence permits, of which we have issued Damian Green: Genuine students doing genuine over a third of a million for non-EU citizens to date, studies are absolutely not in the firing line. We want will tie down identity and we can reconfirm identity them. To take up the last point you made about each time we have contact with the student or worker, students who come here to study in the United but no, it will not confirm departure. What confirms Kingdom, that is what I want to see students doing. departure is the use of e-borders, and the biometric People who use the student visa to come here and residence permit is only one tool. work in the United Kingdom seem to me to be a different issue altogether. Q307 Alun Michael: Won’t it clarify lack of departures, then? Q303 Chair: The problem is that most of the Jeremy Oppenheim: It may do, but what is even more academic institutions—and almost all the evidence effective—and we do this regularly now—is that we Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 41

8 February 2011 Damian Green MP, Glyn Williams and Jeremy Oppenheim check individual groups of students against the concerned about. It is the university and the embarkation controls that e-borders offers us. environs— Chair: Sorry, the university and the? Q308 Alun Michael: But surely the whole difficulty Jeremy Oppenheim: Its environs but it is the has been with certainty and being able to identify buildings— whether those who are meant to leave have left and Chair: Which means what, exactly? the lack of certainty about whether that is the case. Jeremy Oppenheim: It is the buildings the university Are you saying this will make no difference? controls and owns. The reason for this is that Jeremy Oppenheim: No. It makes it a contribution universities have said to us that they use some foreign because it can confirm the identity of a person national students to talk to other incoming students departing, but so can many passports as well, so it is and to help with the relationships with people who not the only tool that we use. have not travelled into the UK before— Damian Green: The essential use of the biometric residence permit is to stop people interacting in ways Q312 Chair: So the answer to Ms Blackwood is they should not be: working and claiming benefits and what? What is the definition? so on. When e-borders is 100% operational, at that Jeremy Oppenheim: The buildings the university point it would be possible but— controls; the campus itself.

Q309 Alun Michael: The reason I am trying to get Q313 Nicola Blackwood: What about research at this is that one of the concerns that has been projects funded by the university but which are taking expressed is that there are a number of students that place in non-university-owned properties? are remaining after the end of their course at the point Jeremy Oppenheim: No. In the consultation, we when they are expected to leave, and there is the designed it and it was intended to describe those suggestion that the estimates are too high because opportunities for work that helped the university do there is not a proper and accurate measurement of its business. It was not about research and not about “out” as well as “in”. I am surprised that there is no working in a WHSmith on the campus. thought that this would make a difference to that accuracy. Q314 Mark Reckless: Minister, you may be aware Damian Green: Specifically the biometric residence Professor Acton last week had a proposal to confirm permits, as Jeremy has explained, will help, but in the the numbers of students who were overstaying for end you need to have a system that counts people out universities, and thought this would be a very helpful as well as counts people in— piece of research and said that universities would be happy to pay for it. Would the Home Office accept Alun Michael: Understood. that offer? Damian Green: At the moment, e-borders covers Damian Green: I have had this conversation with between 55% and 60%, and obviously the biggest gap Professor Acton as well, and essentially what he is is with the EU, and we are in discussions with the suggesting is actually what Jeremy has just Commission about how to do that. described—sampling. Professor Acton has this perfectly reasonable desire that with e-borders we can Q310 Chair: I am sure you have seen the get a 100% accurate figure of who is here and who is Committee’s report on this. Have we now issued the not. Great, we all want to move towards that, but we contract for the replacement for the previous company all know the history of e-borders and now is not the that was administering e-borders? time to discuss it. It will take us a few years to get Damian Green: It will be issued during the course of there. this year; it has not been issued yet. Chair: During the course of this year? I thought we Q315 Chair: Are you happy with the suggestion that were told the last time by a Minister that it would be you do not mind them paying? done by Christmas. Maybe I have that wrong: I will Damian Green: I certainly do not mind anyone else check my notes. paying, but I just think it will not actually get the sort of magic bullet that I think Professor Acton is Q311 Nicola Blackwood: I just wanted to take us convinced the Committee would— back slightly to a student working, and talk about the Chair: But why stop him, if this is what he wants to suggestion that students should work on-campus in the do? He wants to be helpful. week and off-campus in the weekend. I am not sure Damian Green: I have no desire to stop it. what “on-campus” means at a university like Oxford, and it would helpful to have some clarification about Q316 Mark Reckless: So you are happy for whether it means on university property with the Professor Acton to do this research and pay for it? university employer. Chair: And send you a copy at the end. Chair: Mr Oppenheim, can you help us? What is “on- Damian Green: As I say, I am more than happy for campus”? Did you go to Oxford? him to pay for it. Jeremy Oppenheim: We used the phrase for the purposes of the consultation because we had heard Q317 Dr Huppert: Thank you. First, Minister, I was from places like Manchester, which certainly does not delighted to hear that the aim of this is not to drive have a clearly defined campus, that the buildings that down legitimate students, because we have struggled the university owns would be the group that we are to find support for the proposals because there is a Ev 42 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

8 February 2011 Damian Green MP, Glyn Williams and Jeremy Oppenheim perception that that is what would happen. We have Damian Green: Obviously, 9/11 was a total one-off, heard many concerns from across the sector about the so things changed after that and decisions were taken effects. I do not know if you heard earlier that the in uniquely dramatic circumstances. The Australian British Council are saying that attendance at their example is interesting. The big drop in Australia was events is already down just as a result of this Indian students, and what people in India have told consultation. me happened was that there were riots in Australia The Secretary of State for DEFRA made a clear point and Indian students were being beaten up, and that is that her consultation was a genuine consultation. what put Indian students off applying to Australia, and Presumably, you would confirm that this is a genuine you can’t blame them. Clearly, we do not want consultation and that you will take all of the huge anything like that happening here. number of views expressed very seriously, and that if they are expressing concern in this way, you would Q320 Dr Huppert: I think we agree that we do not listen very carefully to that. want riots. There are a number of other categories that Damian Green: It depends whether they are valid are down in Australia quite significantly. I think 20% points or not. You do not need to look outside this is the overall, though it is focused on Indians. Department. We held a consultation on the work- Damian Green: Exactly. Obviously, as I have said based routes, and points were made and we listened several times already, we want genuine students at to them, and we produced a policy that was entirely consistent with what we said we were going to do but genuine institutions, and there is nervousness which was improved by the consultation. That will be whenever you propose change and we are going the case in this instance as well. through the nervous phase at the moment. When people say the attendance at an event is down and it is because of the consultation, I would want to Q321 Bridget Phillipson: Yesterday we visited a see a bit of evidence for that and not because of local language college and met with a number of the advertising problems. students who were studying there, the vast majority of whom had offers at very prestigious universities Q318 Dr Huppert: I believe the British Council has conditional upon the exams that they will be taking that. I would also like to ask about one section, this year. What they were very keen to stress was that because a lot of the consultation deals with different many of them came in with a relatively low level of stages rather separately. We have had a lot of evidence English but with the right support were very quickly about pathway routes. For example, in Cambridge, able to improve their English, and they were clearly one of my three excellent universities, Anglia Ruskin very talented, intelligent and able people who will University, has a partnership with Navitas and the come and study at degree level. The concern with the Cambridge Ruskin International College where consultation is that the changes that are made, if we students come in, learn some English at the beginning, proceed in terms of sub-degree level changes, may learn the skills they need to study and go on to degree stop those people coming in the first instance, and it level. There is a whole flow-through here that could is actually only through being in an English-speaking be lost by changing things right at the very beginning, country that you are able to bring your English up to with a knock-on effect at graduates and beyond. How the necessary standard. Also, the way in which we are you taking account of those issues? study at universities and in colleges in this country is Damian Green: It is precisely on those sorts of issues very different from many of the countries that they where the very clear distinction—that I think there is have come from, and it is the kind of learning that general support for—between highly trusted sponsors they undertake while in the UK that allows them to and not highly trusted sponsors actually plays a very progress onto degree level. significant role. We have said that you can bring Damian Green: Assuming that the college you were people in at below degree level if you are a highly visiting was a highly trusted sponsor, they will still trusted sponsor, and I have spoken to universities as be able to bring people in. Of course, specifically on well about pathway colleges, and Jeremy spends his language schools, one of the changes I have made as life touring universities and talking about this at the a Minister regards the student visa. Previously, the moment. That is clearly one of the areas where we are student visitor visa could only operate for up to six having quite fruitful and constructive discussions. months. I had very strong representations from many colleagues as well as the language schools themselves Q319 Dr Huppert: Have you looked at the that that was not long enough, particularly for people experience of the US after 9/11, where they put in from east Asia and south-east Asia, so we have greater controls and then saw a massive loss in changed that to 11 months and that was, broadly numbers? It cost money, reputational damage and so forth. Australia is having a lot of internal arguments speaking, welcomed by the language colleges. at the moment about the cuts there from the Rudd Chair: That was very welcomed in the meeting we Government, and there is a lot of pressure to change had yesterday; it was all the other bits that were not. that now. Seeing the steps that these places that went Damian Green: Yes, but I am not entirely clear what through extra restrictions are now having to come to the other bits are. to attract students back again, are you not concerned that Britain could go through exactly the same cycle Q322 Bridget Phillipson: One of the concerns is and we would end up having to boost our economy around students having to return back to their home again by trying to get people back? country to reapply. For some students it was quicker Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 43

8 February 2011 Damian Green MP, Glyn Williams and Jeremy Oppenheim and cheaper to return to their home country to do so, Q325 Nicola Blackwood: One of the comments we but it might simply deter others from applying to stay received yesterday from the language schools and on at British universities. Would it not be a better pathway colleges was that they are unhappy with the system to allow some kind of follow-through so that current situation, where if they have a student who account could be taken of their attendance and has applied to them and they have offered them a legitimacy on the pre-degree course rather than having place and that student is proceeding through the visa two separate, stand-alone processes? process, the colleges are not informed whether that Damian Green: The application would clearly take student has been granted the visa or has failed the account of how well they had performed on the visa. They are not informed by UKBA when that previous course anyway, so I think— student arrives in the UK, so they do not know until Bridget Phillipson: The colleges seem to suggest that after 10 days of no appearance whether or not there is they would welcome an improvement on that. They a problem with that student coming over, and I did not feel that that was the case. wonder if there is a way that communication could be Damian Green: That is obviously the principle that tightened up, because that might help a bit. one would want to apply. That is the whole point of Jeremy Oppenheim: We are very aware of it, and in not having entry clearance officers decide, of trying the introduction of the points-based system there were to have an objective system—the points-based system a series of compromises we had to make based on cost introduced under the previous Government. One of to be able to have a system that allowed the sort of the reasons is that if you can show genuine things that colleges and others want. Part of what the qualifications, and you have attended a course and Minister had mentioned was the rollout of a 21st passed a reputable exam at the end of it, you can show century piece of technology. Very much a part of the that, and so you get a tick in that box— specification is to allow colleges and universities to have access to which visas have been issued and when they are actually used, so that is very much a part of Q323 Bridget Phillipson: The difficulty is that you what we want to do in the next 18 months. may not have passed when you are applying. You have to return home pending the outcome of exam results in order to reapply to come back. Q326 Nicola Blackwood: Will that system have a Damian Green: It is not beyond the wit of man to special email address or phone number that students can call to alert UKBA if they have identified a organise to pass an exam and mark it and produce the bogus student? results so that you can then apply for a place, I would Jeremy Oppenheim: have thought. Clearly, there are practical issues. We already have local immigration teams throughout the country with Bridget Phillipson: It is the timescale, yes. published telephone numbers who will take a call, and Damian Green: We will look at them during the the Immigration Inquiry Bureau in Croydon would consultation. also take a call. They answered 81% of all the calls in the last week in January. So I think there are Q324 Steve McCabe: In terms of language schools, systems to allow individuals to report bogus students. Minister, if you achieve a level of success and a level The other thing that will happen in this new system is of performance from your officials that has eluded that individuals will be able to track their own other Ministers, what contribution will it make to your application. One of the great frustrations to date is that target of reducing immigration to tens of thousands? you cannot track online the progress of your Damian Green: We do not have a specific number put application. We intend to make sure that is an integral to this, but as I say— part of our system from later this year onwards. Steve McCabe: You must have an idea, surely. Chair: I have here the sheet—which I will give you, Damian Green: No, I do not have an idea of a Minister—from Bellerbys College, which we visited specific number— yesterday, which shows the pathway from learning Steve McCabe: We have spent a lot of time talking English all the way to university, and the success of about it if it is minimal, so I am assuming it is those colleges. The point being that you come to significant. England to learn English, just as Sir Andrew Green Damian Green: I have already explained to the learned Arabic in Lebanon. The point of coming here Committee the size of the potential issue. We have is to get those language skills. I am sure that when talked about the number of bogus colleges that have you were at Balliol and President of the Union you been closed; I have explained that in that sector, in met international students who wanted to come to which we closed 58 and suspended the licences of a Britain because they wanted to learn English and be couple of hundred others, in the last year for which we part of the culture, and that is Dr Huppert’s question have figures, there were 91,000 certificates granted, so to you. that gives you the overall size. Chair: The answer is that you do not have an answer Q327 Dr Huppert: Thank you, Chair. We have had at the moment. quite a lot of evidence highlighting benefits, Damian Green: And nor will we; we are not going to internationally, from having good relations with have a specific target for the number of student visas countries who send students and from having former issued, and if we had suggested that I think the students in significant positions of power in those universities would— countries, and also the side benefits to other students, Ev 44 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

8 February 2011 Damian Green MP, Glyn Williams and Jeremy Oppenheim to universities and to research of having international Jeremy Oppenheim: We do it when we can, but it is students. Have you had conversations with colleagues often because the evidence provided by the appellant in the Foreign Office and in BIS about those aspects is provided extremely late. I am very happy to arrange to do with the consultation of what might happen to write to you about York House. afterwards, and what were they saying to you? Damian Green: You are inviting me to repeat private Q331 Chair: That would be great. The final question conversations among Ministers— concerns timetable. You have said you had 31,000 Chair: Ministers will be coming in for us as well. responses; I am sure you are not going to read every Damian Green: In which case, you can ask them. Yes. one of them, Minister, because you will not have the The short answer to your question of whether we have time to do so. I have just had a letter back from the had conversations is yes, of course, and we are in Home Secretary telling me that there are no firm dates constant conversation with colleagues across for making an announcement. The Committee is Whitehall, because clearly this has implications for obviously keen to conclude its report and assist the other Departments as well, and everyone here will Government on this issue. Is that still the case? Her know there is a clearance system and the consultation letter is only dated yesterday. There is no firm date for is a Government consultation; it is not just a UKBA making an announcement? consultation, and the eventual policy will be a Damian Green: Of course it is the case. The Home Government policy, not just a UKBA policy. Secretary wrote this letter yesterday. I am not about to disagree with my boss. Q328 Chair: Since you are here, I was at York House last week as a witness in a visitor’s visa case, and Q332 Chair: What surprises me is that I heard this there is a list at York House that has all the cases morning through a leak—and I am sorry to bring up where Home Office presentation officers do not turn the issue of leaks from the Home Office—that actually up at all. Has there been any progress in trying to get you have chosen 16 March as the date of the more of these officers turning up at immigration announcement. Is that simply not correct? Will there tribunals? be no announcement on 16 March? Damian Green: The short answer is yes, in that I Damian Green: I am not saying there will be no share your concern. We may have discussed it announcement; I am simply saying there is no firm previously in this forum that the UKBA should do date. better at presenting officers, and I do not know if you Chair: Excellent. So 16 March is wrong. know the figure off the top of your head— Damian Green: Hang on, no. I would say there is no firm date, and I have participated in no conversations Q329 Chair: Do you know why a whole list had no in which 16 March is mentioned. presentation officers, having gone through the entire Chair: Maybe your two officials could tell you, since immigration system, if we want to keep people out of they run the show in the Home Office. the country who are not genuine? Where do the Home Damian Green: No, they do not. Office presentation officers go? Chair: As officials, do we have a date? Jeremy Oppenheim: I do not know the specific Damian Green: No. answer, but if it helps I can say that in some regions, Chair: We have no date. including my own in Yorkshire Humber in the north- Damian Green: There is no firm date. That is what east, we achieve nearly 100%—and that does not the Home Secretary said yesterday. mean 80%; it means nearly 100%—of representation Chair: All right. 16 March is all we know as— in both asylum and temporary migration cases. The Damian Green: Could I say in response, I hope the times we do not appear are often because we are either Committee’s report will be a valuable contribution so conceding the case or because we think the papers are the sooner it is produced clearly the better all around. strong enough for us not to need to have Chair: I think it is very helpful—we had a representation, and that is accepted by the tribunals. conversation with the Home Secretary about this—if the Committee is scrutinising, it is always better for Q330 Chair: Mr Oppenheim, in those cases would it the Government to have our report before it publishes not be a better idea to write to the appellant and tell its results, and we will work as fast as we possibly them? Because I was sitting in a waiting room where can. there were 36 cases—people who had taken the entire Damian Green: Good. day off—waiting for a case where there was no Chair: Minister, Mr Williams, Mr Oppenheim, thank presentation officer. you very much indeed. Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 45

Thursday 3 March 2011

Members present: Rt Hon Keith Vaz (Chair)

Nicola Blackwood Steve McCabe Mr James Clappison Bridget Phillipson Michael Ellis Mark Reckless Dr Julian Huppert Mr David Winnick ______

Examination of Witness

Witness: Rt Hon David Willetts MP, Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.

Q333 Chair: Could I refer to the Register of America and Canada or Australia, you want them Members’ Interests, where the interests of all to come here? Members of this Committee are noted, and could I Mr Willetts: Yes, I do want them to come here, but welcome the Minister of the Department for within a framework, which we fully understand the Business, Innovation and Skills. Thank you very coalition is committed to bringing down net much for giving evidence. We know that you have migration, and we do believe that there are abuses— a very busy schedule, as does the Secretary of State. loopholes in the system—that means that, sadly, He recommended that you should come before us there are people getting in who aren’t in a position rather than himself, so I am sure you would be to benefit from an education here and who shouldn’t pleased with that recommendation. Minister, I am be coming here. sure you have been following the inquiry that the Chair: As far as bogus colleges are concerned— Committee has been conducting into student visas. and indeed bogus students—I think that everyone is How important are international students to the against them coming into this country and abusing UK economy? the system. There is general agreement across the Mr Willetts: First of all, thank you very much for House on this. the opportunity to be questioned by your Committee. Mr Willetts: Correct. There are a range of estimates of the significance of foreign students. We calculate that international Q337 Chair: The Committee, in its last report, non-EU student tuition fees themselves are £2.2 recommended that we look at the term “college” billion a year. UUK have done an estimate of the and one way of stopping people setting up a college wider economic value in terms of the spending by above a fish and chip shop in, say, Brighton and those students that came in at £2.3 billion a year, calling themselves a college was to limit that term. so we are clearly talking about significant extra Your junior Minister has written and said that your resources being brought into the British economy. department is still against the limiting of the word “college”. Could you just explain why? Q334 Chair: So your department welcomes Mr Willetts: Yes, and of course the letter that John international students to come and study in this Hayes sent you on 8 February does set it out, I country and feels they make a significant think. The biggest single problem is that the word contribution to our economy? “college” is used in so many different contexts for Mr Willetts: We believe that legitimate students such a wide range of institutions that trying to coming to British universities and FE colleges are regulate it would, we think, be very hard to do in indeed a valuable contribution, yes. practice and would place unfair burdens on legitimate institutions. It is such a generic term in Q335 Chair: How would you define illegitimate the English language, it would be very hard to students then? control it in that way. That is our main concern. I Mr Willetts: There is always the challenge of abuse think the second point I would make is that you and this is something that, quite rightly, the UK quite rightly, Chairman, moved from bogus colleges Border Agency has been focused on. So I wanted to bogus students. Although this is more for the it to be clear that our welcome was for people who Home Office than for us in BIS, I think that picture can genuinely benefit from education here, and it of a kind of PO Box with absolutely no education isn’t extended to people who don’t have the activity going on, or a single room above a fish and qualifications that would enable them to benefit from chip shop as the bogus college, I think the effective the kind of educational provision we have. But, action by the UKBA has made great progress in yes, we have an internationally respected education eliminating those. The attention is shifting more to system. People from around the world wish to come people who maybe do not have the education or and participate in it and will pay for that and it is qualifications they claim to have, perhaps colleges an excellent British export industry. that have rather lax procedures for checking qualifications. So it is the under-qualified or Q336 Chair: So you would not want to see any inappropriate student, which I detect from my Government policy that stopped international conversations with the Home Office is increasingly students choosing Britain rather than going to the focus, rather than those absolutely unacceptable Ev 46 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

3 March 2011 Rt Hon David Willetts MP and absurd abuses where I believe, and the UKBA and has become a route for bringing other people say are probably diminishing now. who are not themselves studying. That was the reason for my hesitation. Q338 Chair: That is very helpful. On the point of the international reputation, when Ministers go Q340 Mr Winnick: We have taken evidence about abroad, as you have been abroad recently, do you some students who stayed on and they have been go abroad and you say to governments, “We want much welcomed by the academic community and you to come and do business with Britain and we have become very distinguished, but that is not an would like your international students to come and argument of ever-increasing numbers of students, study here”? Is that one of the messages of the once they finish, to stay on in the United Kingdom. Government, that Britain is open for business as far I accept that entirely. So the division line as far as as international students are concerned? the Government is concerned is the difference Mr Willetts: The Prime Minister has said Britain is between students coming here for genuine reasons open for business, and one of the businesses where to genuine colleges and then there is another factor: we excel is education. Indeed, therefore, when I was the desire to make sure that most of them do not with him on his visit to India in July, we were find some excuse—genuine as it may be—to stay very keen to strengthen links between our education on permanently in employment in Britain. arrangements in India. But I would say that the kind Mr Willetts: That is certainly one of our concerns, of very direct marketing, “Come here and get an correct. education in Britain” does not go down as well as saying, “There are benefits from exchange in education between our two countries”. I personally Q341 Steve McCabe: How damaging do you think urge British students to do more to go and study the impression that you want to clamp down on abroad and I find that a very good way of having a students has been in terms of our reputation abroad conversation with, for example, the Indian Education and the likelihood that you will succeed in the future Minister is to discuss how we can also increase—I in attracting the types of students that you are think from memory it is—the 500 British students interested in coming to the UK? currently studying in India, because there are some Mr Willetts: We tracked the statistics, and the excellent institutions in India and it is a great way current application process is not completed, but the of broadening people’s minds. So when I do attend evidence so far is that applications to study here international events, we think of it as a two-way from abroad remain buoyant, so we are not seeing exchange. a tailing off of applications. I do get asked sometimes when I am at conferences on this subject. Q339 Mr Winnick: Minister, I noticed a slight I was in Russia last week and students at the hesitation on your part when you were replying to Moscow University were asking me, “Can we come the Chair about whether or not we need more and study in Britain?” and I was able to say, “If students. I note that the Home Secretary said in a you have excellent qualifications and are coming to speech on 23 November 2010, “However, the a mainstream British university, yes, you can come”. majority of non-EU migrants are in fact students. So you do get asked about it but, as I say, if you They represent almost two-thirds of non-EU look at the application figures, they appear to be migrants entering the UK each year” and then she holding up. spoke about reforming visas. I can understand obviously the need to clamp down very firmly, as Q342 Steve McCabe: So no one has given you the the previous Government started to do, on bogus impression that, in fact, Canada, the United States colleges, bogus students; we could do without them. and increasingly Australia are developing much But as far as genuine students are concerned in more favourable regimes for attracting high-quality genuine colleges, is it firmly the Government’s view foreign students and that we are in danger of losing that it is the desire of the United Kingdom out? You have not heard that? authorities to encourage, as previously, students to Mr Willetts: You are right. Those are our leading come here? competitors. We always keep an eye on the Mr Willetts: You are quite right, Mr Winnick, about competition and some of them are growing market my hesitation, and the reason why I hesitated was share. Our reading at the moment is that New that I was considering some of the other aspects of Zealand and Canada are the ones that are making that question, for example, students who come here the biggest effort to grow their share of this market and do have a qualification, but they stay here and study for so long that they build up a strong claim and we keep an eye of their offerings. But so far I for settlement, so in reality it has become a route would say there is still strong international interest into this country, even if it was not necessarily their in coming to study at our education institutions. intention when they started, or students who come here with dependants. There is a blurred division Q343 Dr Huppert: How much has your department between simply coming here to study and then going been involved in the consultation? back home, and on the other side, the bogus student. Mr Willetts: We have been in close touch with the There are some areas in the middle where you could Home Office and of course especially now that the argue—and it is in the consultation paper—that the consultation process is over, we are, between us, education route has become a route to settlement sifting through the responses that have come in. Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 47

3 March 2011 Rt Hon David Willetts MP

Q344 Dr Huppert: Roughly how many meetings Q347 Michael Ellis: I would like to move on would there have been between BIS officials and slightly, if I may, to look at economic impact. Hitherto Home Office officials? in recent years, absence of proper scrutiny has Mr Willetts: I think there have been several meetings undoubtedly led to discussing bogus students and and we are in close touch. I think there have been bogus colleges and examples of colleges without seven meetings of officials since the outcome of the students and students without lecturers and the like. consultation. I have had three meetings with the Have you or your department a plan to undertake Minister at the Home Office, Damian Green. some type of internal economic assessment of the impact of this policy and of the reduction in student Q345 Dr Huppert: I am struck that you described numbers that may well occur as to the impact on the that the test for students being valid is whether they BIS department and its policy areas? could benefit from study. That is not what the Home Mr Willetts: The impact assessment that is being Office has been saying and is not what the prepared as part of the Government’s review of this Immigration Minister said when we questioned him. policy will cover these economic impacts—it is They clearly have a very different concept of what the intended to do so—and of course we will then release test would be. Are you still trying to persuade them our overall impact assessment as part of the process of the voracity of your position? when the decision is taken. So yes, the regulatory Mr Willetts: We are working together to reach an impact assessment is intended to capture those sorts agreed position in the light of the consultation. I am of effects and it is being prepared as a shared analysis, not in a position, sadly, to bring to this Committee the agreed starting point for the discussions, that should final outcome. We are still considering all this. The be agreed between BIS and the Home Office. Government has a shared belief and a commitment in Michael Ellis: When are you expecting that? the coalition agreement on bringing down net Mr Willetts: The impact assessment has been sent to migration and the Government also recognises the the Regulatory Policy Committee for its consideration strength of education—not just as a good thing in its as part of this policy process. own right, but a successful British export business— and we are working together to reach a satisfactory Q348 Chair: In terms of the timetable, the outcome to the consultation. Committee has written to the Minister suggesting that they might like to see the Select Committee’s report Q346 Mark Reckless: Regarding your answer to Mr before announcing their proposals. Do you know if Winnick’s first question, I think you accepted that it there is any date for the announcement of the final was more than just about clamping down on bogus proposals? students at bogus colleges. We asked a similar Mr Willetts: I do not believe there is such a date and question to the Minister for Immigration and I am still agree with you, Mr Chairman, I think it would be very not entirely clear where we are on this. If you look at helpful if we had sight of this Committee’s report the consultation, there were various restrictions that before any final decisions were taken. make it less attractive perhaps to become a student here in terms of dependants, working, post-study Q349 Nicola Blackwood: Just to follow up on that work, what language you had to have and so on. Do point briefly: do you think that it would cause a you expect these changes to lead to some sort of problem for universities or language colleges if the genuine but marginal students or marginal colleges announcement were to come later in May? Would it perhaps not carrying on under the new regime in the cause problems with admissions, do you think? way they are now, or do you see it restricted to bogus Mr Willetts: The uncertainties about exactly what the students at bogus colleges? visa regime will be are raised with me by universities. Mr Willetts: As I said, Mr Reckless, this is where The sooner universities know where they are the there is a fuzzy boundary. This is precisely what we better. But equally, the process of Government has to are exploring with the Home Office at the moment. work. The consultation period has only just ended so Take one of your examples, the language requirement: we are working flat out. That is why I have already you can argue that if a college or university takes on had meetings with the Home Office Minister, so we someone with rather rudimentary English, are they are trying to get this resolved as quickly as we can. able to participate in the educational process in the way they should? That is a legitimate concern. Q350 Nicola Blackwood: Could we talk about the Universities say that they are the custodians of their post-study work route? You have mentioned that you admissions procedures and are best able to judge think that British education has a cache regardless of whether someone has the English to be able to the visa system perhaps and regardless of the right to properly study. Dependants: again, where we look at work, but we have received quite a lot of evidence what other countries do, bringing in dependants, that from students saying that it is one of the major reasons can increase the migration figures and they are not why they do come to study in the UK: because they coming here to study. To what extent does people’s are going to have this two years’ post-study work ability to bring in dependants affect their own opportunity, in particular for MBAs, lawyers and willingness to come and study here? These are the those whose study courses require some kind of work grey areas that we identified in the consultation experience attached. How do you respond as Minister document and we now are considering with the of Education to the recommendation to entirely Home Office. abolish that route? Ev 48 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

3 March 2011 Rt Hon David Willetts MP

Mr Willetts: You rightly identify a strand of argument Mr Willetts: That is a classic example of where we that has come in in the responses to the consultation can be so proud of excellent institutions that also are document. Going back to Mr McCabe’s question, as a very sensible export business, and I think the Home we look around our competitors, they vary. The US Office has worked to not doing things that would does not quite have an offer as generous as our post- damage their international performance. study work offer. New Zealand and Canada—who I said are growing market share—they seem to be using Q354 Mark Reckless: I recall the Foreign Secretary, post-study work as part of the appeal. So it is a who is an INSEAD graduate, telling students at feature, but there may be ways we can tighten it up or London Business School in his speech that they make sure it is not abused and becoming a route to should not believe everything that they read in the settlement. It is part of that fuzzy boundary that we Financial Times in respect to these rankings. I did are investigating. though want to ask you about this post-study work, their argument, “It gives us a leg-up on the Q351 Nicola Blackwood: Yes, but you think competition and if you take this away we will be less something short of abolition would probably be more attractive”. Is that a proper argument? Should they not useful from the higher education rather than the be attracting students on the basis of their immigration standpoint? educational offer? Mr Willetts: I am trying to avoid the model. There are Mr Willetts: Yes, I understand that argument. In two standpoints and because we are working as a team reality, there may be benefits. It does go, strictly in the Government, coming from two different speaking, beyond the education offer, but you could departments, trying to solve it. argue that as there are other countries that have something like it, and I accept the US is not quite so Q352 Chair: We do understand that, Minister, but of flexible, but Canada and New Zealand I think have course we have called you here because we have similar offers. When you are looking at the heard such powerful evidence from the universities competition, you have to assess what we offer and the colleges of higher education. We want to compared with other countries. But you are certainly know about the impact on your department. So we do right: there are purists who would say that if the understand that you are part of a Government, but I argument is they are coming here for education, they think Nicola Blackwood’s question is quite pertinent. are coming here for education; they cannot get a kind Will it have an effect? There must be an opinion or a of free pass into work. But we are working with the paper on this. Home Office for ways in which we can reach a sensible way forward. Mr Willetts: I think it would depend on exactly what was proposed, and there are a whole range of options between complete closure of the route and the status Q355 Bridget Phillipson: Much of this so far was quo. Obviously one thing we are discussing with the focused on university students, but we have had a lot Home Office is what those options might be. of evidence from the further education sector on this area, firstly for those standalone courses, but also Chair: But complete closure would not be something evidence that many students would not be able to go you would favour? on and study at British universities if they were not Mr Willetts: There are certainly universities that tell able to come and study some degree-level courses in us very clearly that if they were to completely lose the UK in order to get their language skills up to the post-study work option that would put them at a scratch, but also because some of them study for a disadvantage compared with the competition. year less in their home countries than we would do in Chair: Are you still a visiting professor at John Cass? the UK. What discussions have you had with the Mr Willetts: I believe I have lapsed. I am not aware Home Office on the area of further education and the of having any communication with them for two or impact any changes could have? three years now, but I certainly was a visiting Mr Willetts: Yes, I very much agree with that point, professor several years ago. and I think the Home Office recognises that there are several countries from which we recruit where you Q353 Chair: The MBAs have sent us a table that finish your school education at what we regard was published in the Financial Times and I was essentially as AS-level, and so part of the British astonished to note that the London Business School market is doing a course where you move on from was the top business school in the world. I always AS-level to A-level and improve your English at the thought it was one of the American universities, but same time and might have a kind of conditional offer it is UK first above Wharton, Harvard, Stanford and from a university that depends on your getting up to Colombia, and the MBAs in their evidence are the A-level standard and improving your English. So, unanimous that any abolition of the post-study work yes, I think there is a very legitimate activity and I route would devastate their position in the lead table. hope as we work through the proposal in the Of the top 100, I think ten to 15 are UK universities, consultation that that continues to remain possible as including Imperial, Cambridge, Oxford, Cranfield a route into universities in Britain. School of Management, which surprises me. Bridget Phillipson: We visited a language school in Mr Willetts: Oh, no, it is an excellent institution, if I Brighton, and what struck me was the number of may say so. students that had come over to study English, often Chair: These are world-beaters. Are you satisfied that coming with very little English, who now had offers we might lose our status if— from the top universities in Britain and were very keen Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 49

3 March 2011 Rt Hon David Willetts MP to stress that. I think that is an important part of this Q357 Mark Reckless: You told us about £2.2 billion we need to not overlook, and I think the figure was of fees and I think a study showing about £2.3 billion something like 40% or 50% of those international of other economic benefits, but what about the soft students of British universities had come and studied power element? How important do you think that is some degree-level course. While obviously we want and is that something you have been pushing forward to crack down on bogus students and bogus colleges, in any discussions you have had with the Home Office some of the language schools I think feel that their on the subject? good work is perhaps being undermined by the Mr Willetts: Yes, that is the case, and you do come constant talk of that, whereas much of the work across ministers in other countries, business people, cracking down on those bogus colleges has already who have very fond memories of studying at been very successful. university here and it is very hard to measure Mr Willetts: Yes, I accept that the worst-case bogus precisely, but I think it is a source of enormous good college problem is less acute than it was. We are will. fortunate, people want to come and study to learn Mr Winnick: Muammar Gaddafi’s son currently. English and they want to come and study in its home country, so to speak, and that is something that is a Q358 Mark Reckless: The issue with overseas great business for us to be in, and of course it is one campuses, could universities not be encouraged to put route into university. Again, it has to be policed and a sort of greater emphasis on expanding there and there are issues about exactly what people’s language developing the reach to the United Kingdom in that competence is, but yes, I agree with your broad point. way? Mr Willetts: I think we are at the early stages of Q356 Chair: You would agree with the point that if globalisation in our education and it is going to play people want to learn English very, very well they out over the next decade. At the moment they do have would want to come and live in England. Similarly, if to commit a significant amount of management I wanted to learn Spanish, of course I could go to resource and financial resource to setting up a campus Linguarama or whatever it is called, but at the end of abroad. You can imagine university partnerships, a bit the day, the pathway from language school to like what happened in the airline industry, networks university is an important one for the British of universities linking together. I think a lot of this is economy? going to develop in the years ahead. Mr Willetts: Otherwise they might be speaking it with an American accent. Q359 Mark Reckless: Finally, the Prime Minister, Chair: Or even worse, an Australian accent. when he was in China, spoke to some Chinese Mr Willetts: I think it is great that people want to students and said one of the issues was about them come here. Of course we have to accept—and this is having to pay such high fees when our fees here were another interesting strand that we are very interested so low. Is there a prospect that studying in Britain may in at BIS and I am working on at the moment—that be more attractive to international students because education, as it becomes more international, there is international fees may become less high than they going to be distance learning. There are campuses at otherwise would because of the fee reforms here? British universities and other institutions set up Mr Willetts: We do keep them separate. There is abroad. There are ways in that people can benefit from control over student numbers and regulation of fees a British education without physically coming here for British and EU students and no such regime for and there must be capacity limit to what we can do. non-EU students, so they are separate issues. But I So in parallel with trying to get a sensible way think anything that gets our universities to focus on forward on student visas I am very proud that the high-quality teaching should improve, which is one of Open University is something that people around the the crucial reasons for our reforms, and should also be world use and that there are British universities that something that overseas students appreciate as well. want to operate abroad directly. Chair: The Committee has just come back from Q360 Steve McCabe: In order to clear up a bit of Turkey, where we have been looking at the the fuzziness you have referred to, in your discussions implications of enlargement and what was interesting with your Home Office colleagues, of the two-thirds was the desire of a lot of middle-ranking officials in of non-EU migrants who are students, have you the Turkish authorities to come and study here. If they argued that the reduction should be only in bogus were going to learn English, of course they could students or is there a part of that two-thirds figure that learn it in the English school in Istanbul or Ankara, you think can safely come down without doing any but they prefer to come to a college like Brighton. damage to our universities and other institutions? Mr Willetts: Yes, I understand that argument. What advice have you given to your colleagues on Chair: What has also been interesting in the evidence that? is that the universities faced with these proposals are Mr Willetts: When I say it is fuzzy, it is because it is not trying to throw the language schools overboard fuzzy. The question is on issues like the terms on by saying, “Government, look at them and limit their which dependants come or the terms on which people numbers”. They were quite supportive of the pathway are going to do post-study work, you are talking about from language school to universities. something that is different than an individual student Mr Willetts: Yes, we understand that, and that is a coming to study here. It is that penumbra around the legitimate route into university and I accept that, and edge where the universities say, quite I think the Home Office does as well. understandably— Ev 50 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

3 March 2011 Rt Hon David Willetts MP

Q361 Steve McCabe: So if a student has dependants do a proper consultation, and now what is happening with maybe somebody you would want to discourage, is there is a shared exercise by the Home Office and is that a message that you would want us to BIS working together now developing precise understand? proposals in the light of that consultation. What I have Mr Willetts: The universities and colleges say, and I been trying to do is to share with this Committee the quite understand this, “It is part of the offer. If you area that our discussions are focusing on and how we come here and you are a post-graduate aged 35 saying are trying to draw the boundary in some of these you are going to come here for more than a year and genuinely rather tricky areas. yet you cannot bring your partner, your husband or Chair: You have been very helpful. I did say the wife, that makes the offer less attractive”. On the other words “final question”. It is an elastic final, because hand, the partner is not coming here themselves for other colleagues just want to ask very brief final education, so we are trying to find a sensible way questions. forward that does enable us to deliver the coalition agreement without damaging the core offer from our Q364 Dr Huppert: My apologies for my brief excellent education institutions, and I think we are absence; I had to be in the Chamber for a question. making great progress on that. You made it relatively clear, I think, that there is this tension between what you would most like to see Q362 Steve McCabe: When the British Government happening with students coming in and the second staff overseas, we do not say that their families Government’s drive to reduce net migration. Do you and dependents cannot go with them. We think it is think that students ought to count as part of net quite reasonable as part of the package that when we migration, because presumably roughly as many send someone overseas for four years their family go arrive as leave, which ought to suggest that it is zero? with them. What is the big distinction? If someone is Secondly, most of the public, including organisations coming here to a high-quality university and is a high- such as Migration Watch, would say that students quality student who will make a contribution, is it coming in, studying then leaving, is a completely numbers? You are prepared to see a reduction in those different category from people coming to settle. numbers in order to get your overall migration Would you agree with those suggestions that we numbers down. Is that what you are saying? should reclassify what we are looking at? Mr Willetts: The question is at what point is a perfect Mr Willetts: Setting aside your rather tendentious legitimate desire to carry on with one’s family life introduction, I am assured that the international while studying—or in your example, working for measures of migration—the statistics that are used one’s country abroad—does that slip into an attempt across the world—do count essentially as people to come to this country, where the real aim is to get coming to one country for more than a year as your partner working and the student bit is the junior migrants, and therefore the fact that students are element in the deal, so to speak? But you are using enclosed is not some eccentric British policy. It is, I the student route to get your partner in and in am told, how the international statistics are compiled. employment. It is very hard to draw that line, but those are the kinds of issues that we quite rightly have Q365 Dr Huppert: Australia analyses it differently, to consider as part of this exercise. but one can certainly categorise them differently. What message would you like to be sending to Q363 Chair: But you are not a marriage guidance international students considering applying to study counsellor, you are the Business Minister, are you not, in Britain? and therefore what concerns me is that there should Mr Willetts: That we have a clear, fair, robust visa be fuzziness at this stage. Surely the fuzziness should regime and a legitimate student coming to a legitimate have been sorted out in the coalition before the British education institution of high quality will be proposals were put to the public? It seems that these welcome to come and study. discussions are ongoing because of the coalition, which if it was not a coalition Government perhaps Q366 Nicola Blackwood: I wanted to take you back we would have had one clear policy that all to your comments on globalisation and the Open departments would have signed up to. Should the University and the fact that we are delivering British business department be part of the consultation? education in all sorts of places in the world. There is Should it not be part of the proposal? also a need—I hope you agree—for immersion, Mr Willetts: These are all the issues that were brought especially in cases of English language education out, quite rightly, in the consultation document and especially for students coming from abroad. Is that the final— something that you are factoring into discussions? Chair: Minister, one second, should the Government Mr Willetts: Yes, and of course people want to come not have had a firm set of proposals first and then and study here and improve their language in that way. put them out to consultation, rather than the poor old The only point I was trying to make, and I think it is business department putting its views forward as part very topical at the moment—and forgive me, this is of the consultation? from memory and I apologise in advance if I have this Mr Willetts: No, I do not think that is how it has been wrong—but I believe reading somewhere that more conducted. It is absolutely right that this is put out for women in the Arab world have access to higher consultation so that all the outside bodies affected— education through the Open University than from any and my understanding is that there has been 30,000 other education institution. It is when you come across responses to the consultation—it is absolutely right to points like that, you realise that there are various ways Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 51

3 March 2011 Rt Hon David Willetts MP in which people can have that opportunity. I think we University, so I just did not want those kinds of routes can be very proud of institutions like the Open to be overlooked.

Examination of Witnesses

Witnesses: Jeremy Browne MP, Minister of State, Fiona Clouder, Acting Director, Migration, and Andrew Whyte, Director of Communications, Foreign and Commonwealth Ofﬁce.

Q367 Chair: Thank you very much. You have been Q368 Chair: Are you getting any emails from your extremely helpful. I am most grateful. Thank you, posts abroad that countries are concerned about the Minister. Could I call to the dais the Minister from the Government’s proposals on student visas? Is anyone Foreign Office, Jeremy Browne. Minister, thank you upset about this? very much to come and give evidence today. I am Mr Browne: When I travel, lots of countries have sorry you were kept waiting, but the evidence from raised concerns, which are not necessarily hostility, the Minister of Business was so interesting that we but are questions they wish to discuss about the continued with our questioning. Welcome back to the Government’s overall immigration policy. Committee. As a former Member of this Committee, Chair: Yes, but specifically on visas—we are doing we are delighted that you have risen so fast so quickly. an inquiry on student visas—you have had no Mr Browne: Thank you very much, Chairman. I think concerns from any governments about the I served on the Committee under your chairmanship Government’s proposals on student visas? in my last few weeks. Mr Browne: Four governments have specifically Chair: Indeed. responded to the consultation process. Mr Browne: To a former Foreign Office Minister, I Chair: Yes, but I am talking about you in your am delighted to be here. capacity. As a Minister for Foreign Affairs, as you Chair: I am glad you are here, because I was reading travel around the world, as you get emails from your a copy of the West Country Newspaper, and I posts— understand that the concerns that so many people have Mr Browne: It gets raised in the course of about the Government’s proposals on immigration are conversations. I have to say it was raised more now sorted, because it quotes this in the edition on frequently when I first became a Minister in the first Monday, 28 February 2011, “Taunton MP Jeremy month of the Government than it does now, and I Browne has assured the heads of Taunton and think a lot of the initial concerns that foreign Wellington’s four independent schools that changes to governments had were— Chair: So it is not being raised now with you? visa arrangements will mean overseas children will be Mr Browne: I cannot remember it being raised welcome to study here. He said this, ‘I was pleased to specifically in the last month or two in a general be able to tell them that the Government has listened conversation. to their concerns and the visa system will make sure that British schools remain attractive to international Q369 Chair: How are communications with Delhi, students’”. good between London and Delhi between the Foreign Mr Winnick: All due to the Minister. Office in London and the High Commission? Would Chair: Do we take it then, as this is coming at the they tell you if they had meetings? end of our inquiry, that everyone is very happy about Mr Browne: They would. Although I am the Minister the Government’s proposals? responsible within the Foreign Office for immigration Mr Browne: I am pleased you are such an assiduous policy, I am not the Minister specifically responsible reader of important newspapers like that one, for India, so I have not had the opportunity to travel Chairman. There are different categories, as the to India, but I have travelled— Committee will know. There are children under the Chair: But you know? age of 18, many of which studied at independent Mr Browne: I would hope to, but I have travelled to schools. There are further education colleges, many quite a lot of countries that do have significant of them teaching English, and then there are higher numbers of people coming to study in this country, education institutions, but for under-18s there are China most obviously, but the Philippines, for indeed four independent schools in my constituency example, and it does come up in conversation. and they have something in the region of 10% of their Chair: It is just that India’s Higher Education students recruited from outside of the European Secretary, Mr Dass, met the High Commissioner for Union. India—it is reported in yesterday’s Times of India— Chair: They are all fine? to express his grave concern about the proposals and Mr Browne: They see it as a value in terms of the fee how they would affect relations with India. Were you income to the school, in terms of enriching the aware of that, since the Prime Minister did go over cultural experience of the British and other European last year and try to build up links with India? pupils at the school, so it is important for them to be Mr Browne: Seeing you asked what my experience able to attract children from outside the European has been, let me explain what my experience has been, Union, and it is not the Government’s intention to which is that when I became a Minister, and certainly harm or restrict that, because the restrictions would in the first few months of the Government, there were not apply to children. anxieties raised on a frequent basis about whether Ev 52 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

3 March 2011 Jeremy Browne MP, Fiona Clouder and Andrew Whyte greater restrictions on immigration in Britain would Q372 Chair: I am sorry, Mr Whyte, just remind the have an impact on the country that I happened to be Committee, what is your position in the Foreign in at the time, or the Ambassador or the High Office? Commissioner of the country I happened to be Andrew Whyte: Sorry, my apologies. I am Andrew speaking to. That was partly about students, but it was Whyte, I am Director of Communications and I also about work visas and it very obviously came up oversee the relationship with the British Council. in a country like the Philippines that has large numbers of people working here and some people Q373 Chair: So basically £1.7 million is spent, is it? studying here as well. I think as the Government’s Andrew Whyte: £1.7 million is spent through the proposals have become better understood and the Prime Minister’s Initiative for International consultation process has evolved, those concerns in Education, which is the British Council’s contribution some cases have been allayed, but obviously the final to that. The British Council also contributes to the arrangements the British Government intends to put Education UK Partnership, which is an international in place have not yet been announced and so countries brand for promoting UK international education, and who wish to express their views are still able to do so they put £1.15 million into that, and that is money and may wish to do so. India, along with China, Japan from their grant in aid. In addition, the British Council and Canada, is one of the four countries that has runs a number of exhibitions using the Education formally raised concerns and specifically to do with UK brand— students, as I understand it, in higher education— Q374 Chair: How often are they held? Q370 Chair: How much money does the Foreign Andrew Whyte: Well, I don’t know how often they Office spend annually on attracting international are, but I know they’re held in 33 countries every year. students? Chair: To recruit students? Mr Browne: I do not have a specific figure. Andrew Whyte: Well, not specifically to recruit Chair: You asked for two officials to come. Do they students, because a lot of that of course is done by have the figures? institutions, but to promote international education in Mr Browne: Let me ask them in a second, but it is the UK. Those cost £3.6 million, but they are done on worth mentioning that I may extol the virtues of a full cost recovery basis so there’s no actual cost to young people from around the world coming to study the Council. at excellent British universities during the course of my overall business, but it would be rather hard to Q375 Chair: So do you have universities coming out quantify that in financial terms with the value of my and saying, “Come to Britain”? speeches. Andrew Whyte: Yes. Chair: No, I am not trying to put a value on your Chair: So they would pay the cost? speeches. Andrew Whyte: Yes. Mr Browne: But it is all part of our everyday offer as a country. Q376 Chair: Minister, you just— Mr Browne: I just want to say that I think it’s very— Q371 Chair: I think we would like to know, Ms I understand the basis of your question, but I think it’s Clouder, what is your position in the Foreign Office? a hard one to quantify because a lot of young people Fiona Clouder: I am Acting Director, Migration. around the world come to study in Britain for all kinds Chair: Do you know how much money is spent by of reasons and may or may not be attracted by the the Government of the United Kingdom to attract efforts of the Government. I mean, they may be international students by the Foreign Office? attracted by cultural reasons or historical reasons or Fiona Clouder: I think putting a specific figure on even academic reasons beyond what the Government it is very difficult. My colleague can talk about our is saying, but we do routinely, in the course of our studentship scheme that has a specific funding line business as Ministers and officials, explain what associated with it. Britain has to offer, which includes world-class Chair: So you do not have a figure? education. Fiona Clouder: I think attracting students to the UK is done through a number of mechanisms, through Q377 Mr Clappison: Very quickly, notwithstanding high-level bilateral attractions— what the Chairman has just said, we have been Chair: No, I do not want to know the mechanisms, supplied with a table of students coming to study in we will come on to that. Do you know the figure, just this country and it looks as though the number one yes or no? country is India in supplying students to come to this Fiona Clouder: No. country—and correct me if I am wrong—and that the Chair: Can somebody see if they can find us a figure? numbers have been increasing in each year, it would Andrew Whyte: I can add some information, appear, in the last few years, and in one year jumped Chairman, certainly for the British Council. The from 27,000 to 58,000. I do not know if you have British Council contributes to the Prime Minister’s seen those figures or can throw any light on them. Initiative for International Education, which comes Mr Browne: The most recent figures I have are for from a variety of sources, and £1.7 million of the 2009. I don’t know if that’s the calendar year, but I British Council’s grant in aid from the Foreign have 61,000 Indians and they are indeed the top Office— country, ahead of China, which is— Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 53

3 March 2011 Jeremy Browne MP, Fiona Clouder and Andrew Whyte

Q378 Mr Clappison: Yes, and it has grown very 200 people in this EU monitoring mission, which was substantially from previous years apparently, set up on the assumption they would be patrolling according to the table we have been supplied with. Is both sides of the sort of boundary line with the that right? The official is nodding her head. Is there Russian enclaves, on one of those people are saying an explanation for this leap? Because it has been put that there is too much in terms of sort of flower to you that you are not listening to India, oddly picking and bunny hugging and the people there did enough, and the figures seem to show otherwise. I was not seem to have an awful lot to do. There is the 16 just wondering what the explanation is. million just spent on a new embassy, very luxurious Fiona Clouder: I think if we look at how we have for our officials, yet the one thing raised with us by upped our engagement with India in recent years both the leading opposition spokesman and the across a number of fronts, not least by the Prime patriarch of the church, a very modest cost, these Minister’s recent initiative with a major delegation scholarships, seemed to be having this sort of huge last summer, India is of course a growing economy. It reaction, and I just wondered in terms of your is very, very important that we attract the brightest priorities. and the best from India, but also India is also a source Mr Browne: There are some exceptions, and the of abuse and I think in developing the policy on the Foreign Secretary is due to announce shortly how the student visa system, it is important we get that balance Foreign Office intends to spent its budget allocation right between attracting the brightest and the best and for the next financial year, but there will be some cutting down on sources of abuse. countries where we will increase our amount of spending to reflect the increased importance of that Q379 Mark Reckless: Before we were in Turkey, I country in our foreign relations, even against an was on an IPU delegation to Georgia, and one of the overall reduction in the headline Foreign Office issues that was raised there with me, by both the budget. So there are areas that will be protected, or patriarch of the Georgia church and the leader of the in some cases enhanced, but it is against an overall Christian Democrat opposition, was the importance of backdrop, as I say, of reduced costs. The one area that the Chevening sort of scholarships for international is not so obviously and directly within our control is students, and very serious concerns were expressed on our contribution to the European Union; I am not the the cutbacks there, and given we have just spent an Europe Minister, but that is part of a process that the enormous amount on a new embassy, I just wondered Chairman no doubt could shed additional light on in if this economy was sensible and whether its impact terms of negotiations with the other 26 member states on our foreign policy was sort of greater than any of the European Union. money saved. Mr Browne: Let me take a sort of broad approach, Q381 Chair: But it would be helpful—I will which is that the Foreign Office shares the overall certainly shed some light on that with Mr Reckless corporate objectives of the Government, which is to privately later, but it would be helpful if you could address our chronic budget deficit, we are borrowing take up Mr Reckless’ point about the Chevening £425 million, as you know, every single day, and we scholarships and perhaps write to us, unless you regard that as unsustainable. Now, of course the have— Foreign Office budget as a share of total Government Mr Browne: Well, Mr Whyte leads on this specific spending is very small. In fact, we borrow, as a programme in the past. country, more money every weekend than we spend Chair: How many Chevening scholars are there now? on global diplomacy annually. But nevertheless, we Andrew Whyte: Around about 600. have to make our contribution to what the Chair: Government as a whole is trying to achieve, and that Why are we cutting them in Georgia? means finding greater efficiencies within our own Andrew Whyte: I don’t know the details on Georgia, department, and there are very few exemptions, and what I do know, and Mr Reckless is absolutely right, the scholarship programme is not one of them. But we there was a reduction in the Chevening budget this value the programme, we wish it to be successful, we year as part of the initial response, when the new are keen to ensure that the money is spent as Government came in, to the scenario that the Minister efficiently and as effectively as possible, we are has just outlined, and there was a reduction in exploring options for reducing overhead costs, we are expenditure this year. exploring options for increasing the amount of Chair: But you understand Mr Reckless’ point, you additional sponsorship and revenue that comes into are not a politician, but you are an official, and his the scheme. Of course in total immigration terms, we point is he has just come back from Georgia where are talking about a very small number of people, so they spent £16 million on a new embassy, and all they in the immigration context this is not a particularly want is a few scholarships to come and study here. It significant issue, but in terms of global influence and seems a priority issue. reach, I meet Chevening scholars on a frequent basis, Andrew Whyte: I can’t give you the answer on and they are generally well-disposed towards Britain Georgia; what I can tell you is that we are increasing and it’s an asset to us that they are so. expenditure on Chevening scholarships next year— Chair: Excellent. Q380 Mark Reckless: With respect, Mr Browne, Andrew Whyte:—not back to the level they were there is one very big exception from the cuts in terms previously, but increased on there, so 2011/12 of the Foreign Office’s, which is the European Union, Chevening scholarships will be higher than they are and in particular what I saw in Georgia was there was in 2010/11. Ev 54 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

3 March 2011 Jeremy Browne MP, Fiona Clouder and Andrew Whyte

Q382 Mark Reckless: Can we follow-up on this Andrew Whyte: Yes. I mean, obviously the British issue? Council provides an accreditation service for English Mr Browne: Write to me directly. language teaching institutions here, and I think you Mark Reckless: Well, if you could write to me. have had evidence from somebody from there Mr Browne: But they are separate budget headings, previously. there is not a pool of money that is spent on estate Chair: We have received evidence from them, yes. management and Chevening scholarships, and we Andrew Whyte: But I think their view would be that need to make sure that we have suitable buildings for they don’t think that it would be appropriate for a our staff to work in around the world. There is a number of reasons for them to extend that completely separate budget heading, which is how accreditation into overseas operations, into the much money we spend on Chevening scholarships. international arena. I think first of all there is a cost Chair: We do not need you to defend that, we element, it would be very costly to do it, they are not perfectly understand, having been— geared up to do it at the moment, they don’t believe Mr Browne: There is not a pot of money for Georgia they have the capacity in their staffing at the moment; and then a discretion about whether you have a new that is not what their role is, and it would be expensive building or a Chevening scholarship. to add that, and they see no way of recovering those Chair: Minister, we do understand that, but what costs. I think there are some legal issues as well, there would be helpful is if you could write to me about the are no sort of established legal criteria and legal current position on Chevening scholars generally with processes by which you could judge accreditation in some facts and figures, which obviously you do not different countries, so there would be some difficulty have now; and Mr Reckless will then follow up with in establishing criteria and then perhaps some of the judgments being open to challenge in individual you. countries—that they would make. Also, there is no real international consensus on what aspects of—that Q383 Nicola Blackwood: Thank you, Chair. One of you could do to set up an accreditation service, so the concerns which we have received from degree- what are the principles that you would work on. The offering colleges and also lower than degree-offering other thing I think they would say is that, on their colleges, are the problem of bogus agents who act as experience, there is very little evidence from the UK a route for bogus students to come into the UK to higher education sector that they want the British genuine colleges. There have been a number of Council to play that particular role. But, having said recommendations along the lines of different versions all of that, I mean they do encourage UK institutions of accrediting. We were wondering what role the to carry out due diligence on their agencies, so the British Council thought it could play in helping these people they are talking to in this country when they colleges to ensure that the agents they engage with are are accrediting them, they do encourage them to carry genuine and are genuinely trying to bring in out due diligence and they do provide them some legitimate students. support and advice, I think an online training Mr Browne: Well, maybe I’ll answer initially and programme, to help people go through the sort of then, with your permission, Mr Whyte could add to it. questions they should be asking to do that due First of all, I am delighted that Oxford and Cambridge diligence themselves. University MPs are sitting next to each other, great global brands in the context of this conversation, and Q384 Nicola Blackwood: That is an interesting start, there is a concern about abuse. I think it’s one of the but what is the current system, if a college feels like main public concerns in this country. I mean, this is it has concerns about a specific agent, is there an issue better addressed by the Immigration Minister communication between UKBA and the in-country than by me, but it is a concern to people here that embassy to ensure that those concerns are passed on people who would not be able to get visas to come and that information is communicated perhaps to other into the country by a work route come into the country colleges who might similarly have experienced by an education route instead and then work illegally problems? when they are here, and I think it’s right and proper Mr Browne: Well, that is more of a Home Office lead the Government should address that. It also has some than a Foreign Office lead, so it is better to ask the diplomatic disadvantages, because of course some Immigration Minister, but— people coming from other countries are seeking to Chair: Do you want to chip in, Ms Clouder? exploit the system, but others may be coming here Fiona Clouder: Yes, Chair, if I can just comment. innocently with good intentions and then find that the Certainly there are lots of mechanisms of course is inadequate compared to the amount of communication between the universities and between money they paid for it because the institution is not the Home Office, and there is then very active expressly designed to provide courses, it is there to communication back to our embassies and including provide a way of circumnavigating the immigration colleagues from the Serious Organised Crime Agency, rules. So we are keen to address that; it is obviously risk assessment officers based in our visa sections a Home Office lead, but we want to maintain the overseas, so there is good communication to try and reputation of British education around the world and track down these bogus agents and clamp down on that is why the Home Office is looking at the that, and it is a very important part of the system. accreditation process and trying to make sure that it has a robust integrity. But you may wish to— Q385 Dr Huppert: Thank you. If I could turn the Chair: Mr Whyte? Government’s proposals for the consultation, how Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 55

3 March 2011 Jeremy Browne MP, Fiona Clouder and Andrew Whyte involved has the Foreign Office been in developing to be in the same category, Migration Watch were not that policy in response to the consultation and in concerned about student numbers per se. looking at the responses to the consultation? Mr Browne: Well, it would be possible to do that, Mr Browne: Yes, it is a Home Office lead, but we but the Government’s commitment is to reduce from have been closely involved. I meet with the hundreds of thousands to tens of thousands the levels Immigration Minister on a monthly basis; they are of net migration based on the current calculations very open, good exchanges, and we have the rather than a new set of calculations, and, as you opportunity to raise any concerns that we have and we rightly say, we may have some new success, do so if that is appropriate. We are keen, I mean I was particularly because a lot of the economies of the going to come back to the point that Mr Clappison world where we should be very pleased that bright was making a few minutes ago, which is we shouldn’t young people want to come and study in Britain, like regard an increase in the number of students coming India and China, are growing very strongly, so the here, obviously with the caveat that they are doing so demand is likely to increase in the short to medium properly, as being a sign of failure, it is a great sign term. But, as you rightly say, if it levels out, then we of success that a growing economy like India, and a will be in a position where the inflow and outflow will growing middle class in India, sees an attraction of roughly match and it would not have an impact on the their young people, and their cleverest young people, Government’s overall statistics. coming and studying in the United Kingdom. In some places, if you take somewhere like Indonesia, it is the Q388 Dr Huppert: But how do you fit your stated fourth biggest population in the world, a G20 country, desire a couple of questions ago, to see an increase in we are in very direct competition with Australia, for international students competing in Indonesia and so example, to try and attract their brightest young forth, with the Government’s objective of reducing people who want to study in a country where the first that number? language is English, so we— Mr Browne: There are quite a few issues, and again it is a Home Office matter, but there are a few issues Q386 Chair: So you would not want any proposals with using net migration as the overall measure, that would limit that? because of course one of the things you do not control Mr Browne: Well, it is appropriate that we have an is the number of British people who migrate to other overall migration policy that enjoys the confidence of countries, and that has an impact on the net migration, the British public, and the abuses that have been and you might reduce the amount of immigration, but alluded to by some Members of the Committee are find that the amount of emigration has also reduced ironed out of the system so much as that is possible. and you are not at the point you wish to be at. So it But one of the greatest opportunities Britain has to is a difficult measure for the Government to be certain project itself on the global stage, if you like, is the that it will meet, but the Government is not proposing, quality and reputation of our education, particularly or at least not as far as I’m aware, to change the— our higher education, but right through to independent move the goalposts, if you like, in terms of the way schools and elsewhere, and it has a substantial that immigration is measured in terms of the Prime immediate financial benefit to those institutions and to Minister’s commitment to reduce to tens of thousands our economy as a whole, but it has a longer-lasting the number of net migrants coming into the country reputational benefit, because there are extraordinarily each year. So, if there is an increase in student large numbers of people right around the world in numbers, for the two or three years before they feed positions of influence in politics, business and out of the system, that would have an impact on the elsewhere, who have studied at British institutions, overall net migration statistics as measured by the and we are keen to use that opportunity to continue to Home Office. have that kind of influence. Chair: Indeed. Minister, we will be coming on to all Q389 Chair: I think Dr Huppert’s point is obviously those points. Because time is short, if you could just you have put the legal position forward, public tailor your answers to the particular question, we are opinion, for example in the West Country, would not going to deal with all the other points. regard those bright young people from abroad who pay very large fees and go to Wellington to be taught Q387 Dr Huppert: I think it does link to what I was by the great Dr Seldon, they would not regard them about to ask you. We have had some comments from as migrants, would they? other witnesses that a focus on net migration, in as Mr Browne: I should clarify a point, which is that is much as it affects students, is simply the wrong way a different Wellington school. Lord Archer, Weston to look at this, because the vast majority of students Super Mare, attended the one in my constituency. come and then they leave, so in fact net, over a long Some people feel that he could have conveyed that time period, there are not extra numbers, and that more clearly. countries such as Australia are very successful at Chair: But these four independent schools that you distinguishing between students coming and leaving, spoke to over the weekend, or whenever you spoke to and people coming to settle, a different terminology. them, the fact is, does the public regard a student, Do you think it would be appropriate to change the coming here genuinely to study, and leaving after way we discuss the figures, to move away from three years, would they regard them as a migrant? counting students as migrants? Because we have Mr Browne: Well, they wouldn’t be counted, the ones struggled to find organisations, which consider them at the four independent schools in my constituency, Ev 56 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

3 March 2011 Jeremy Browne MP, Fiona Clouder and Andrew Whyte and they may stay for more than three years, because Britain than the proportion of Chinese, so it’s not just they would be under the age of 18. absolute numbers, so these points— Chair: But you understand the point I am making? Steve McCabe: No, I am asking about the high-risk Mr Browne: I understand the point that you are visa countries though. making. One could make the case for the rules to be Mr Browne:—get raised in lots of countries, not just reframed in such a way that students weren’t counted those. My— in the overall figures on net migration, but— Steve McCabe: No, I was asking about your Chair: I am not talking about the rules; I’m talking discussions with China. about public opinion. Mr Browne:—direct experience is that every country Mr Browne:—but that is not the Government’s I have spoken to, they understand that we wish to position. I think the public do, for what it’s worth, I prevent abuses through the education route and they mean, I have no more insight into public opinion than are supportive of attempts to try and make sure that anyone else in the room, but my view is that the public people are not coming here as students on student probably do differentiate between students and other visas when their real purpose for being in the United forms of migration, with the caveat that they are Kingdom is because they wish to work or some other concerned about abuses, and they probably, within reason. If they thought that the migration system was education, differentiate between a brilliant Indian being tightened beyond that, they may have additional scientist going to study physics at Cambridge concerns, but specific concerns about the integrity of University and some of what they might regard as the the system; my experience is that foreign rather easier routes of entry to do some English Governments support what we are trying to do there language courses at some other institutions. So it is because they understand— important that, if there is public confidence in our institutions attracting bright young people from Q393 Steve McCabe: Minister, I do not want to put around the world that that public confidence is well words in your mouth, but I just want to be clear that deserved, because we are tightening the entry routes I have understood your answer. Is it the case that, that are particularly— when you have had recent discussions with Chinese officials and your opposite number in China, they Q390 Steve McCabe: Morning, Minister. Minister, have welcomed the proposals to tighten the visa regime because of the abuse that you suspect exists, can I ask you, how many of the top five or six high- have they said to you, and can we quite reliably put risk visa countries are you responsible for? in the report, that you are saying the Chinese welcome Mr Browne: In geographic terms, half I think of all this proposal to tighten visas against them, to students studying from outside the European Union in differentiate? the United Kingdom, half of them come from the top Mr Browne: I can’t remember whether I have had, in five countries, so there is quite a concentration, and those specific terms, that specific discussion with a they are India, China, Bangladesh, Saudi Arabia and Chinese Minister, but I have had those discussions the United States of America, and I am only with Ministers of Governments in Asian countries, responsible— and— Steve McCabe: I have the list; I want to know how Steve McCabe: Yes, but it is a high-risk country; that many you are responsible for, Minister. is why I am asking about China. Mr Browne: I am responsible for one of those, which Mr Browne: In every case that I can recall, they have is China. Although British higher education has a recognised that we have to have an immigration great attraction in South East Asia, which I’m also system, which is robustly enforced and is not abused, responsible for, and of course it is partly distorted, and they don’t want their own citizens to be abusing that list, by those being very high population countries it, and if we are taking measures to prevent their own in the main, so it’s quite a high proportion of students, citizens from abusing it, they fully understand that for example, from Thailand, as a percentage of their position. But it’s worth also saying that we want to population, come to study here, but because the attract the brightest and best students who wish to population of Thailand is comparable to ours, whereas study outside their countries to the United Kingdom; China’s is 25 times bigger— it’s not the Government’s policy to try and necessarily attract every single young person in the world who Q391 Steve McCabe: For the purposes of this, you might want to study, regardless of their aptitude, to are responsible for China, which is one of the top five? the United Kingdom, so we want to be in a position Mr Browne: It is the second highest; I think there’s where good, high-quality people can come here and about 85,000 Chinese students at any given point. add value to our institutions and revenue to our institutions, and that is what we are wishing to do, Q392 Steve McCabe: No, no, the proposal I and it is an important part of our foreign policy and understand is to make it more difficult to obtain visas my view is that we will not have an immigration from the high-risk countries; that is what you are policy, which conflicts with that objective, but it ought consulting on. When you have spoken to your to tighten the system where it is abused, and I think opposite number in China and their officials, how that is well understood by foreign nationals as well. have you put that proposal to them and what have they said to you about it? Q394 Chair: To be clear, it is the abuse from the Mr Browne: Sorry, labouring the same point again, bogus colleges and students you are concerned about? but a higher proportion of Thai come to study in Genuine students coming here to study, you welcome Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 57

3 March 2011 Jeremy Browne MP, Fiona Clouder and Andrew Whyte the increase in India, for example, although some may Q395 Michael Ellis: Thank you, Mr Chairman. Just be alarmed at the increase because they want to know on the issue of campuses abroad, and, as you have why it was happening, such as in Bangladesh, when said, a number of British universities have already there was a huge increase, and it was then suspended, opened campuses, or are opening campuses abroad, but clearly the Foreign Office is not alarmed about and there is China and there’s others in the Middle this. East. My specific question is concerning the—I’m Mr Browne: If the reason for the increase is because interested in the UK projected overseas, and in a soft an increasingly outward-looking ambitious number of way, the soft power method. Now, it is going to people in the said country wish their children, or the become increasingly attractive, is it not, to both children themselves wish to be educated in the United universities and students, if international students find Kingdom, rather than the United States or Germany it more difficult to come and travel to the UK for them or Australia or whatever it might be; that is something to study here, for them to use the campuses overseas. that I think we should be pleased about and our Now, is that going to have an adverse effect, do you institutions will be pleased about that as well, and it think, on British soft power projecting in that way, in is something that I make a virtue of, when I go to other words, our influence in these areas may often these countries I say, “I hope that you will consider relate to immersion in our culture, will we lose that? coming to study in our country”. When I went to Chair: Minister, a brief answer, because we do want Nottingham University 20 years ago myself, ten years to make progress. ago Nottingham University opened a Malaysian Mr Browne: I hope the brightest and best young campus, five years ago Nottingham University opened people from around the world will choose to come to a China campus, and a few months ago I went to the the United Kingdom, or at least look seriously at the Nottingham University China campus. The reason I’m option of coming to the United Kingdom. Of course, making this point is because, so successful is the the question depends on whether the Chinese student British educational model, that the institutions are able studying at the Ningbo Nottingham University to take the product to the customer, rather than just campus would otherwise be studying at Nottingham, waiting for the customer to come to the product, if I or whether otherwise they would not have gone to a can put it in those terms, and there are 5,000 people British institution at all, and I have not seen any studying at the Nottingham University China campus. particular research into that matter. But, if it were the I wish more of them were British, because I think it case that they would otherwise be going to an would be a great opportunity for British people to institution in another country, or another university in have exposure to China, but overwhelmingly they are China, then you could regard that in soft power terms Chinese people who are benefiting from British as a sort of net benefit. education without necessarily having to come to Michael Ellis: Yes, they will doubtless have some Britain. influence on a British campus overseas, other than Chair: There are now, as a result of you opening your none if they were not. campus at your old alma mater, there are now— Mr Browne: What I was quite interested in when I Mr Browne: I think Lord Prescott opened it, but I went to the Nottingham University China campus visited it. was, of course it’s not the same as being in Chair: There are now 10,000 Malaysian students, Nottingham, and as I say, I would love more British 10,265 in the United Kingdom, 5,000 of which were young people to take the opportunity, if they were studying at Nottingham. studying at Nottingham University, to spend some Mr Browne: I was not aware of those particular time at the China campus, I think it would be a good figures, but there are some Government figures that experience, and I was depressed that very few had even I don’t know off the top of my head. chosen to take that opportunity. But they may have Chair: I have just told you what they are. more exposure to British culture, if you can put it in Mr Browne: The point I am making, I think it’s a those terms, than you might imagine. For example, all very exciting development, and— the courses are taught in English and it is not a Chair: So you are very pleased about all of this? franchise arrangement, this is a Nottingham Mr Browne:—I think we should be excited about it, University course with the same rigour and the same which is, as I am saying, an individual could study an content in most cases as the courses as would be the engineering degree at Nottingham University and they case in Britain, and one of the attractions is that you could spend one year in Nottingham, one year in are getting a British type of education, not just that it Malaysia, one year in China, and have exactly the is physically located in the United Kingdom. same degree at the end as if they had never left the East Midlands. Now, I think that is a very exciting Q396 Steve McCabe: Very briefly, I wonder if you opportunity for cultural exchange, for British higher could just give me a glimpse into your diplomacy, education having even greater brand strength, if you Minister. When you say to foreign students, “I wish want to put it, around the world, and in some cases more of you would come and visit in Britain” and you that won’t require the students from the other say, “But I am going to make the visa regime tougher” countries to come to the United Kingdom at all if they what do they say back to you? don’t wish to. Mr Browne: What I say, for example, I spoke at a Chair: I do understand, but could I just ask for a little university in Indonesia, and per capita four times more bit of brevity in answers, because I think a lot of Thais come to university in Britain than Indonesians. people want to come in, and we want to release you Indonesia is an increasingly important country; I think by midday. we should be looking to attract more Indonesians, the Ev 58 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

3 March 2011 Jeremy Browne MP, Fiona Clouder and Andrew Whyte brightest and best Indonesians to study here. I always Mr Browne: I hope having a former Foreign Secretary say to them that, “I think it’s important that we have on their advisory board will help, but I don't want to a level of net migration, which can be assimilated into second guess, I haven’t had those conversations with our society, and I think it’s important that the rules Sunderland University myself, but my hope is that and systems are not abused, but I would strongly Chinese bright, talented people who would benefit recommend that you look seriously at the option of from studying at Sunderland University, and studying at a British university or another educational Sunderland University wishes to recruit and attract institution because we have some of the best in the them, that that should still be able to happen. I think world and I think that you will enjoy it and you will it’s a very important part of Britain developing benefit intellectually and in other ways from coming stronger relations with increasingly important to study in the United Kingdom”. countries like China. And it is possible—and I can’t Steve McCabe: What do they say? speak for every individual student—but it is possible Mr Browne: I hope they find my arguments that the very fact the Government is looking at this compelling, Mr McCabe. What is interesting is that area may be misinterpreted by some people or may we are generally regarded globally as second only to create anxieties for some people, and I hope that those the United States in terms of the attraction of our anxieties will be allayed, because our headline education system, and particularly in Asia where objective of Government, of trying to make sure that about three-quarters, just short of three-quarters of all we attract people, particularly I think from these foreign nationals from outside the EU, who study in emerging economies, which are increasingly Britain, come from Asia, and the other part of the important to Britain’s foreign policy interests as well, world that I’m responsible for is Latin America, I that remains our objective, and so, if Chinese students think we have a deficiency there. The value of British don’t think that’s our objective then clearly we need education is better understood in Asia than it is, for to correct that. Although the overall numbers are very example, in Latin America. strong from China, and my suspicion is they will continue to grow. That may not be necessarily in every Q397 Steve McCabe: Would we want to increase single institution, but, if there is a dip, perhaps I would numbers from Latin America? suggest, as people in China and elsewhere come to Mr Browne: I think that would be good for us, if see that their worst fears have not been realised, it we were attracting high-quality bright people to study may well be that we carry on, on an upward from, say, Brazil, which is an increasingly important projection, as more and more people in China see the country, and one that we have links with, which, in benefits of being educated in a British university. my view, need to be strengthened in the future. Q400 Bridget Phillipson: With regards to soft Q398 Steve McCabe: Have you any idea how much power, we have received a great deal of evidence we could increase numbers from Latin America by about the importance of British students being able to without it affecting your overall targets, Minister? come and study in the UK in terms of our soft power Mr Browne: There’s a number of questions bound up overseas; that those people will often go on to become in that, because of course it’s for the individual the leaders in business, in civil society, and in politics. universities, if we’re talking about universities, to What is your view on that? decide for themselves how many non-UK or non-EU Mr Browne: I am an extremely enthusiastic supporter students they wish to have, so they may not wish to of the premise that you have just put. Britain has the recruit them, and we’re not in a position to force them. sixth biggest economy in the world. By the middle of Chair: A brief answer to Mr McCabe, around about the century it is projected that the total EU population how many more would you like to see? will be 5% of the world’s population, the total EU Mr Browne: I don't have a figure in mind and it economy will be 10% of the world’s economy, and wouldn’t necessarily have an impact if, as I was Britain will have slipped from sixth to about tenth, saying to Dr Huppert, there is a corresponding outflow depending on which projection you believe. But at the other end of the system. Britain’s place in the world is not just a league table Chair: Right, so we may have to send more people of GDP, and we have all kinds of influence, which is out. beyond our economic strength, and one of those, possibly the greatest of all, is the reputation of our Q399 Bridget Phillipson: Minister, on the issue of universities and broader education sector, and this China, Sunderland University in my area attracts a gives us a huge amount of influence and goodwill and large number of students from China, and what they friendship and we must— have said to me is that the tone of pronouncements Chair: We must not put that at risk. from Government Ministers, and just the very fact of Mr Browne: I don’t wish us to put it at risk, but that the consultation in itself, is already having a knock- is not incompatible with having a properly enforced on effect on their ability to attract students and they and rigorous immigration system, and so, if the are seeing a growing reluctance for Chinese students premise of your question was that a rigorous to come and study in the UK who are now considering immigration system would put it at risk, I don’t accept other countries. Now, for a new university like that premise. Sunderland, who are already facing big cuts in their teaching grant, do you understand the kinds of Q401 Chair: Because I asked the library to do a note concerns that they’re expressing about the tone that on foreign heads of Government who were educated the Government has adopted in this area? in this country, the King of Bhutan went to Oxford, Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 59

3 March 2011 Jeremy Browne MP, Fiona Clouder and Andrew Whyte the Prime Minister of India went to Oxford and best people from around the world, particularly Cambridge, the Prime Minister of Malaysia went to rapidly emerging economies, but we do regard that as Nottingham, the Prime Minister of Singapore went to being compatible with the Government’s overall Cambridge, the King of Bahrain went to Cambridge, objectives on migration. the King of Jordan went to Oxford, the King of Jordan also went to Kings College London, the Emir of Qatar Q403 Michael Ellis: So it does not follow, does it, went to Sandhurst, the Sultan of Oman was educated Minister, that tightening up the system to reduce here until he was 16, the president of Syria went to the bogus applicants and to improve the quality of Western Eye Hospital, George Papandreou, the Prime students is going to have a deleterious effect on the Minister of Greece, went to the LSE, the King of type of applicants that our Chairman has just outlined, Monaco went to Bristol, and the President of Turkey in other words we can get the numbers down and went to Exeter, and, of our senior Minister, the Deputy improve the quality? Prime Minister went to Minnesota University and the Mr Browne: I agree with that. In fact, it may even College of Europe in Bruges, the Foreign Secretary have a beneficial effect because it may further enhance went to France to study, the Chancellor went to the reputation of British education, if the abusers are Davidson College in the United States, the Secretary tackled effectively. of State for Energy and Climate went to the Sorbonne in Paris, and Lord Strathclyde went to the University Q404 Chair: It is abuse and the bogus colleges that of Aix-en-Provence. So that means international you are most concerned with, as with other Ministers? students are very, very important to this country. Mr Browne: Yes, we do not want the most brilliant Mr Browne: I feel inadequate compared to that. When Indian physicist to think that they are not able to come I went to Nottingham China campus, it was and study at Cambridge University, we hope that they interesting; I met the Chancellor of Nottingham will see the attraction in studying at Cambridge University, who is a Chinese professor, that is not the University rather than studying at an Indian university, Chancellor of the Nottingham China campus, that is or for that matter a university in the United States or the Chancellor of Nottingham fullstop. So a big Australia or Canada or some other country. change is taking place in the British educational Chair: Or indeed at Nottingham. We have just come institutions who have the imagination and the size of back from Turkey. vision to realise how profound the overall changes are Mr Browne: We have so many brilliant people at in the world and we have a great opportunity to be Nottingham University. part of that process. But, as I say, I think we are doing well in Asia and parts of the Middle East, and your Q405 Chair: Just a final question: the Committee is list suggested that there are great historical ties there, also doing an inquiry—because we also, like you, are what is quite interesting and conspicuous is there are multi-tasking—into the implications of Turkey joining some other parts of the world, and I mentioned Latin the EU. I am not going to ask you any questions about America, which appear not to feature on your list, and Turkey, but we would like to place on record, Ms I think there is further scope for improvement in that Clouder, because we understand you are in charge of area. the migration section in the Foreign Office, how impressed we were by the work that was being done Q402 Chair: But the Foreign Office position on this by Emma Robinson, who is part of your section as is very clear, you want to see more students coming the Migration Delivery Officer, and the relationship here, you think we are an international centre, between her and the SOCA people who we met there, however, you want to make sure net migration goes and that kind of work is extremely important, and I down, which means in a sense— just thought it was—because the Members that went Mr Browne: The view of the Foreign Office, my view, were very impressed with that. We are very grateful is that our approach to a rapidly changing world for what has been done there. Turkey is an extremely should not be to pull up the drawbridge, it should be important country in terms of dealing with illegal to have global aspirations and to think in those terms, migration and organised crime, and what Emma and we wish to attract more students from right Robinson does, with the SOCA agents, is of great around the world, particularly economies who are value to this country. developing quickly and will become increasingly Fiona Clouder: Thank you very much, Chairman, important to us. It is not a complete numbers game, that’s very good to hear. We think very highly of we want to attract high-calibre good students, we Emma, she is one of a network of 14 migration don’t want to attract large numbers of people who are delivery officers around the world, and those posts in manifestly—don’t have the academic rigour to my department are funded by the UK Borders Agency, undertake the courses. in collaboration with the Foreign Office, and I think Chair: Indeed, get rid of all the bogus students. that’s a very good example of cross-Government Mr Browne: Bogus students, and also, be blunt about working. it, there will be some people who will not have the Chair: Good, thank you very much. Minister, thank aptitude necessary to prosper at our educational you so much for coming. That concludes the session. institutions. We want to attract the brightest and the Ev 60 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

Written evidence

Written evidence submitted by MigrationWatch (SV3) Summary 1. The student inﬂow is huge—nearly ½ million a year from outside the EU. Those who stay illegally add to net migration and contribute to unemployment of British workers at considerable expense to the taxpayer. The Points Based System (PBS) has seriously weakened controls at the point of application. The main purpose of the new proposals is not to “cut” the number of students but to tackle bogus students. Most abuse is thought to be in private colleges at below degree level. Limiting such courses to “highly trusted” sponsors could reduce student numbers by about 27,000. This would involve a loss of fees of £95 million per year. Most of the maintenance expenditure of £145 million is probably earned in the UK. The impact on universities will be limited as only about 2% of their students are thought to be “non compliant”. The cost to the taxpayer of bogus students is of the order of £300–£500 million a year.

Context 2. If current levels of net immigration continue, the UK population, now 61.4 million, will exceed 70 million by mid 2029. Just over two thirds of this increase, or nearly six million, will be due to net immigration. 3. In 2009 about 270,000 students and 20,000 dependants were given leave to enter the UK—all of them, of course, from outside the EU (EU students do not need visas). There were also 198,000 student visitors from outside the EU, giving a total of nearly half a million, (This is three times the number of those who came to work). Non EU students comprise about two thirds of the total of foreign students in the UK.

Weakness of Tier 4 4. The Tier 4 system is fundamentally unsound as a means of ensuring that only genuine students are admitted to the UK. The fundamental question is whether the applicant intends to return home. However, there is now scant effort made to ascertain this. There are virtually no interviews. Whatever their limitations, interviews were a significant deterrent to bogus applicants. The Entry Clearance Officer (ECO) was able to assess the standard of English as well as the coherence and plausibility of the applicant. Now there is little to be lost in submitting a speculative application. Nor are there any checks on the departure of students from the UK. Furthermore, a system that is claimed to be “transparent and logical”, being points based, is nothing of the kind. In reality, the transparency is an aid to fraud and the points are barely capable of adjustment—30 points for a Certificate of Acceptance for Study (CAS) and 10 points for maintenance funds give the required total of 40. The CAS is granted by an educational institution in the UK that has little knowledge of the applicant and his or her circumstances but which does have a financial interest in granting the certificate. The “agents” frequently employed overseas have a similar financial interest. The necessary maintenance funds can, in a number of countries, be borrowed temporarily (at exorbitant rates of interest). Finally, the Entry Clearance Officer can only intervene, however improbable the applicant, if there is evidence of fraud. The “Hub and Spoke” system of regional visa issuing centres further weakens any intelligent overview of applications. 5. On arrival at a UK airport, the immigration officer has limited powers but the sheer number of student arrivals makes it impractical to intervene in all but a few cases. It is notable that when the Prime Minister and Home Secretary visited Heathrow recently, immigration officers pointed to weaknesses in this student system as their main concern.

Purpose of the Government’s Measures 6. It is important to be clear that the purpose of the government’s measures is not “cuts” in the number of students but to reduce the exploitation of the present system by bogus students. In the normal course of events, students should leave after completing their courses to be replaced by others. Over time, therefore, the number of those who arrive will be counter balanced by those leaving with no effect on net migration. There are two exceptions to this. A step change in the number of students will produce a step change in net migration, perhaps tapering off over several years. Also, a proportion of students—20% in a recent Home Ofﬁce study1 will switch to marriage or work thus adding to net migration. Given that little can be done at overseas posts without wholesale reform to the system, the government measures are directed at the UK end—speciﬁcally at private colleges below degree level where much of the abuse is believed to be taking place.

The Hidden Costs of Bogus Students 7. The beneﬁts to the UK of genuine students are not in doubt but serious problems arise when a “student’s” main intention is to remain in Britain and work illegally. Some do not even turn up to begin their courses, others stay on afterwards. Here, the balance is quite different: — By working illegally they take a job that might otherwise be available for a British worker who remains unemployed. This entails substantial costs to the tax payer. 1 Table S1 The Migrant Journey: rds.homeofﬁce.gov.uk/rds/pdfs10/horr43c.pdf Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 61

— Such illegal workers tend to hold down wages at the lower end. They also enable unscrupulous employers to compete unfairly with honest employers who offer decent wages and conditions. — Instead of a benefit to the balance of payments, there is a cost as he or she sends money home. — There is also additional pressure on the National Health Service, State Education System and Housing. — Socially, they join a group of people who are marginalized from society and vulnerable to exploitation. 8. We have estimated (in a separate paper)2 that approximately 32,000 students in higher education per year have overstayed or intend to do so. A proportion of student visitors will also overstay. In virtually every case their purpose will be to work illegally and send money home and, in doing so, they may well be taking jobs that unemployed British workers could do. With 2.5 million unemployed there can be no possible “need” for migrants to fill these jobs, many of which will be relatively low skilled—indeed these are exactly the jobs that the government needs to be available if it is to reduce long term unemployment. 9. The resultant increase in unemployment will entail additional costs to the tax payer in terms of Job Seekers Allowance and Housing Benefits. There will also be a loss of Tax Revenue and National Insurance Contributions. The amount will depend on family status of the person made unemployed and the salary that he or she would have earned. Our estimate is the costs lie between £300 million and £500 million a year.

The Financial Impact of Government Measures 10. Three of the proposed measures might have some impact on the number of foreign students: a) Courses below degree level to be limited to highly trusted sponsors This measure will not affect the universities themselves. We estimate that it will affect about 45,000 students studying at private colleges below degree level. There are currently about 750 private colleges. If only 300 of these were to be granted “highly trusted status” then there would be a reduction of approximately 27,000 students. Preparatory courses are, of course, very important to universities; they will still be available from highly trusted sponsors. b) Closure of the Post Study Work Route In 2009 about 38,000 students were issued with a post study work visa, or approximately one in three of the foreign students who graduated. This measure could be justiﬁed in response to the high level of unemployment among recent British graduates (approaching 10%) but it is likely to involve a small reduction in the number of foreign students. c) Language requirement This is to be raised signiﬁcantly from B1which is an understanding of the main points on familiar matters to B2 which requires understanding of the main ideas of a complex text. The latter, of course, is essential to study at a degree level. The effect on student numbers, particularly in the medium term, is likely to be limited since there are widespread opportunities to learn English overseas and, indeed, many students come from countries where English is widely used. It would, however, deter bogus students. The recent concession allowing students to study English in the UK for up to eleven months on a student visitor visa would ameliorate the position, although the student would have to return home to apply for a university course.

Loss of Student Fees 11. Migrationwatch enquired of a random sample of 30 private colleges taken from the UKBA sponsor list. The average annual fees for their courses of over one year at below degree level was £3,5003—multiplied by 27,000, this gives a loss of students fees of the order of £95 million.

Accommodation and Maintenance 14. The UKBA lays down a minimum sum required for a student to maintain himself or herself for a year. This is £5,400 per year, giving £ 145 million per year.

Local Earnings 15. Foreign students below degree level are currently allowed to work 10 hours a week during term time and to work full time during holidays. For a one year course, about three and a half months consists of holidays during which we have assumed that the student could work for 35 hours a week. This gives a maximum 2 MigrationWatch UK, “The cost of bogus students”, www.migrationwatchuk.org/brieﬁngPaper/document/216. 3 This ﬁgure could be lower. Some colleges did not publish fees and would only give estimates suggesting the amount was open to negotiation Ev 62 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

working time of about 870 hours over the whole year. As they are working legally, they should earn the minimum wage of £5.93 giving an annual income of about £5,150. Not all students will work the full hours but others will work longer so we assume average earnings of the order of £5,000 per year. Multiplied by 27,000 this gives local earnings of the order of £135 million.

Impact on Universities 16. This should be limited since Home Ofﬁce research4 suggests that only 2% of university students are non compliant. Fees are, however, higher averaging £8,600 for a degree level course.5 January 2011

Written evidence submitted by the Head of International Student Support, Imperial College London (SV14) My colleague Professor David Wark attended the Committee’s round table discussion of the UKBA consultation on the Student Immigration route in mid-December 2010 and will be submitting separately to you the statistics from Imperial College cited at this meeting, which I am sure will include the proportion of our students who are from non-European countries (29%) and the financial contribution they make to the College (£75.1 million in 2009–10). He has asked me to write to you with some additional points: 1. PSW should not be completely removed as this will damage recruitment of overseas students to Imperial. Our students see this as an excellent opportunity to gain some valuable short-term work experience in the UK, not as a route to permanent residence. Competitor countries such as Canada and Australia are looking into opening up this option—we will lose students to them. If any changes are introduced we suggest that they are delayed until after the end of January 2012, so that students currently in their final year of study or on one-year Masters courses are not disappointed by having this opportunity removed. 2. If the UKBA is determined to curtail this route then we would suggest a phasing in of one of the following options: (a) Maintain the route for graduates of HTS institutions; or (b) Maintain the route for graduates with a Masters or PhD; or (c) Revert to Science and Engineering Graduates only, which is how this route originated. 3. Students already in the UK wanting to study a new course should not be required to return home to apply from overseas—this would cause considerable problems for Masters students who complete their courses in September and want to move straight on to a PhD. Most PhD funding begins in October, so there would not be sufficient time for students to return to their home country and obtain a new visa at an already busy time of the year. Processing times in China in Summer 2010 were up to 25 working days. In addition, students applying for Tier 4 visas in the UK are able to benefit from expert advice from trained university staff—this advice is more difficult to access from overseas. 4. Any changes to the rules on pre-degree study will seriously impact on our recruitment of overseas students—currently 53% of enrolled non-EEA undergraduates at Imperial previously studied in the UK at private schools or FE Colleges. 5. We do not feel it is necessary to make any further confusing changes to the rules on working in the UK while on a student visa. 6. Highly Trusted Sponsor status should be maintained for the duration of a Sponsor Licence (four years), rather than renewable annually. If some of our feeder institutions were to lose HTS status for a year we would not have sufficient time (or budget) to step up our overseas recruitment efforts in time to mitigate against this change. Moreover, if we are Highly Trusted Sponsors, then judgements of an academic nature (such as English language entry requirements, issues of student progression) should be at the discretion of the University, not the UKBA. 7. The changes proposed in this consultation are not proportionate, nor correctly directed to the actual problem, which the UKBA has identified as not being within the University sector. We would therefore expect to see a number of concessions and exemptions for students on degree-level courses at institutions with HTS status, where the abuse is not happening. 8. Education is a significant UK export so extreme care should be taken in the introduction of any potentially damaging measures, in particular when cuts are being made to other University income streams. January 2011

4 Overseas Students in the immigration system: Types of students and levels of study rds.homeofﬁce.gov.uk/rds/pdfs10/occ90.pdf 5 Paragraph 7.15 Analysis of the PBS: Tier 1 www.ukba.homeofﬁce.gov.uk/sitecontent/documents/aboutus/workingwithus/mac/pbsanalysis-09/. Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 63

Written evidence submitted by the Association of Colleges (SV16) The Association of Colleges (AoC) represents and promotes the interests of Further Education Colleges and their students. Colleges provide a rich mix of academic and vocational education. As autonomous institutions they have the freedom to innovate and respond ﬂexibly to the needs of individuals, business and communities. The following key facts illustrate Colleges’ contribution to education and training in England: — Every year Colleges educate and train three million people. — 831,000 of these students are aged 16 to 18 which compares to 423,000 in schools. — 74,000 14 to 15 year olds are enrolled at a College. — One-third of A-level students study at a College. — 44% of those achieving a level 3 qualiﬁcation by age 19 do so at a College. — 69% of those receiving an Education Maintenance Allowance study in a College. — Colleges are centres of excellence and quality. The average A-level or equivalent point score for Sixth Form Colleges is 800.1 compared with 761.6 for school sixth forms. 96% of Colleges inspected in 2008–09 were judged satisfactory or better by Ofsted for the quality of their provision.

International Students in Further Education 1.0 All references to International students within this document refer to non-EEA nationals who are not eligible to be treated as home students. They will include There are over 20,000 International students studying at Further Education Colleges. 1.1 FE fee income from international students is a minimum of £42 million though this does not include all the other income they generate through accommodation, books, food etc which we believe would put the total benefit to UK plc to around £80 million 1.2 The British Council (Global Value—the Value of UK Education and Training Exports 2007) estimate that the total value of international students to the UK economy is £8.5 billion, making international students a major export industry that needs Government support and nurture in these challenging times. 1.3 By law international students have no access to benefits and have time restricted rights to work. In the recent Home Office report of all the categories tracked, students were the least likely to be here after five years and least likely to apply for settlement; they come to learn not earn. Students studying in Further Education Colleges and Sixth Form Colleges are further time limited to three years. 1.4 International students help create long term global friendships and business links and these “soft” benefits are hugely important for the UK. International students add a hugely valuable international dimension to home students’ learning experience which helps develop the skills they need to operate effectively in the global market place.

Should cuts should be limited to certain types of courses? 2.0 AoC disagree that the raising of the minimum level of study sponsors to degree level (Level 4) and above is an effective way of reducing abuse of the Tier 4 route Our preferred solution would be to fully utilise the Highly Trusted Sponsor (HTS) route and to work with sponsors who are unable to meet HTS requirements. 2.1 We agree that only HTS should be allowed to offer below degree level courses and this will help ensure students are being recruited by genuine providers who take their immigration responsibilities seriously. To help protect the quality of our international students’ experience we would also argue that all sponsors, whether Further Education Colleges or Higher Education providers, should meet the criteria set out by HTS. 2.2 Highly Trusted Sponsors should be able to continue to make offers to those of B1 English language level. We have concerns at how effective raising the level would be in controlling abuse; if a “student” is determined to enter the UK based on a forged English level certiﬁcate then they will simply get a B2 level one rather than a B1 one. The raising of the minimum standard of English from B1 to B2 (approximately “A” level) may substantially damage recruitment from perceived lower risk countries as Korea, Japan, Taiwan and Saudi Arabia, but have far less impact on those presented as higher risk countries such as India, Pakistan and Nigeria. We do not believe that it is justiﬁable to continue the anomalous existing system of demanding higher English language skills from those intending to study on Level 3, 4 and 5 courses than those on Level 6 degree courses. All student applicants should be requested to be able to speak English at a certain minimum level.

The Impact Different Levels of Cuts Might have on Colleges 3.0 International students bring around £42 million worth of income to Colleges. This income allows Colleges to run courses they might otherwise not run and employ staff they may otherwise not employ. Ev 64 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

International students also make a valuable financial contribution to the community where they study and many local people and business would suffer without this input. At a time when College budgets are already facing cuts in funding from Government and having to make difficult decisions regarding provision to UK students, this income is extremely important. 3.1 Colleges have comprehensive systems for monitoring students’ attendance, achievement and retention. AoC fully supports the UK Border Agency’s (UKBA) drive to ensure robust recruitment practices are implemented and maintained throughout the education sector with the introduction of rigorous rules under the new Highly Trusted Sponsor status, a requirement for the recruitment of overseas students onto level 3, 4 and some level 5 courses. 3.2 We believe that more should be done to raise accreditation and inspection standards to ensure the quality of education provision within private institutions of Further and Higher education. We are aware of the existence of private institutions which deliver very poor education, and are disappointed that so many poor private education providers have managed to register as Tier 4 sponsors. 3.3 We would recommend, that priority should be given to further efforts to minimise remaining areas of abuse through tighter inspection, enforcement and compliance of those institutions at the margins, where real risk exists. 3.4 Any changes following the consultation should be phased in but they should not be allowed to stretch for more than one year. The frequent changes to the UK’s student immigration policy makes it difficult for providers to follow and more importantly has caused confusion and concern for our international partners and a period of stable policy is urgently required.

Should the Post Study Work Route Continue? 4.0 We would like UKBA to allow those Highly Trusted Sponsors to continue to offer 50:50 work placement courses. UKBA may wish to remove the right of others to offer these courses at all, irrespective of the level of course. 4.1 Post Study Work visas should be limited to students graduating from HTS and linked to jobs relating to the course of study.

Conclusion 5.0 Further Education Colleges and Sixth Form Colleges are committed to supporting a robust immigration system that helps to ensure genuine international students are recruited by legitimate education institutions. 5.1 Our Colleges are proud of their worldwide reputation for quality, which helps to attract successful and hardworking international students from around the world to study in the UK. These students make an important cultural, academic and financial contribution to College life and the communities in which they live. 5.3 AoC member Colleges are confident that the quality of their provision, students and strong retention rates will prove effective in ensuring that students fulfil the requirements of their visas and do not pose a risk to immigration in the UK. January 2011

Supplementary written evidence submitted by the Association of Colleges (SV16a) The Association of Colleges’ members, publicly funded Further Education Colleges6 and Sixth Form Colleges, are accredited, through inspection and regulation by Ofsted’s inspection system. We strongly believe that the robust, independent and rigorous internationally recognisable standards set by Ofsted guarantee that the sector consists of genuine Colleges that take their immigration responsibilities seriously whilst offering quality programmes to domestic and international students. The current system of accreditation in the private sector appears to be of varying quality. Indeed, there are cases of private colleges failing one accreditation scheme only to be accepted by another which suggests worrying inconsistency in the system. AoC shares the Home Office’s conclusion that this is an issue that needs to be addressed; the current situation appears to permit poor practice which harms genuine providers’ competitive position, allows for possible immigration abuse and has an adverse effect on many international students’ experience which in turn damages the UK’s reputation. There are currently four main accreditation bodies within the private college and private language school sectors; ABLS, ASIC, BAC and Accreditation UK (British Council and English UK). Without further study and evidence, it is difficult for AoC to confidently comment on the quality of these schemes, but there is a need to rationalise accreditation in the private sector by creating one system. 6 As defined by the 1992 Further and Higher Education Act Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 65

To help ensure that the quality of provision and performance is consistent across the entire spectrum of UK Education providers we argue that any accreditation scheme must meet the same high standards set by Ofsted and be administrated by an independent accreditation body. Therefore providers offering education and training to overseas students studying in the UK should either be carried out by Ofsted, which would ensure a consistent approach across the sector or by an independent accreditation body. In addition, the accreditation body should not also be deemed an “membership” body and be reliant on an on going subscription fee. Some existing accreditation organisations not only charge for the inspection service, but also require those inspected to pay an annual subscription based on student numbers. This type of arrangement could possibly lead to a conﬂict of interest. We believe that this approach to tightening up of accreditation in the private sector would greatly assist in protecting genuine providers, reducing immigration abuse and most importantly, help ensure the quality of international students’ experience during their studies in the UK. February 2011

Written evidence submitted by English UK (SV17) English UK is an association of nearly 450 English language centres in universities, further education colleges, and independent schools and private colleges, some of which are educational trusts. Over 400,000 students a year learn English at English UK member centres. The UK is the global leader in the learning of English by study abroad. The sector is worth approximately £1.5 billion a year in foreign earnings to the UK economy. All member centres are accredited under the Accreditation UK scheme, which is managed by the British Council in partnership with English UK. Accreditation UK is approved by the UK Border Agency for the purposes of the Register of Sponsors for Tier 4. English UK is a UK registered charity with the object of advancing the education of international students in the English language. It is also a company limited by guarantee and its Board of 12 trustees is elected from and by the member centres. English UK has been a member of the UKBA Joint Education Taskforce since its inception in 2005, and has supported efforts to reform the visa system for international students and to root out bogus colleges, both on educational and immigration control grounds.

Summary of Key Points Reducing net migration by students is not a Coalition Agreement objective. It is not a meaningful policy objective in any case. The impact of the proposals could be severe, especially on those courses preparing students for university entry. Compliance action should be targeted on areas of abuse. Accreditation arrangements should be improved. This may result in a reduction in the number of international students, but that should not in itself be the primary policy objective. There has been considerable progress over the last three years in tightening up the whole student visa system. There is a need to let these measures take effect, and for a period of stability, before any further blanket measures or restrictions are introduced.

The Policy Background 1. The Coalition Agreement stated that the Government would set an “annual limit on the number of non- EU economic migrants admitted into the UK to live and work”. It further stated that the Government “will introduce new measures to minimize abuse of the immigration system, for example via student routes”. We note that the document does not propose a limit on the number of international students, nor does it suggest that the number of international students should be reduced (except implicitly as a consequence of minimizing abuse). We support the objectives set out in the Coalition Agreement. 2. The current proposals, however, are set in the context of “reducing net migration”. The policy objective of reducing net migration is in itself not particularly meaningful. It does not in fact matter if students enter the UK and remain here legitimately for more than a year on a course. What matters is whether they leave when they have completed the course, or whether they switch into a route leading to settlement. In other words the ultimate and proper policy objectives are ensuring compliance with visa conditions, and reducing permanent migration, settlement and citizenship. The present proposals do not offer a particularly effective way of meeting these objectives. 3. There does not appear to be any modeling of what impact the different proposals would have, either separately or cumulatively. Nor does there appear to be any set timescale. Reducing net migration is taken as Ev 66 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

a sufﬁcient objective in itself, yet there is no indication of by how much it should or will be reduced by these proposals, nor by when. This does not give conﬁdence that the impact of the proposals has been fully considered and that their possible outcomes are known with any certainty. Our view is that if there are measures which should be taken for immigration control reasons, such as ensuring compliance, then those measures should be taken, and any reduction in net migration as a consequence is incidental, but that it is a mistake to set a reduction in net migration as the primary objective.

Impact of the Current Proposals 4. We first wish to address Question 5, which suggests raising the level of English required for a Tier 4 visa to CEFR level B2. This is equivalent to an A level in a foreign language. This would have a severe impact since UK universities recruit around half their international students from preparatory courses in the UK, generically termed international foundation year (IFY) programmes (not to be confused with Foundation Degrees). These IFY programmes usually do three things. First, they improve students’ command of English, to the level required for university entry (which is around level B2 or IELTS 6.0–6.5). Second, they top up subject knowledge (many other countries do not have the equivalent of our Year 13, the second year of A level) so that all students start a degree course with more or less the same level of UK curriculum knowledge. Third, they teach the skills of independent study, which is needed since many other parts of the world hold to a more didactic style of pedagogy. One English UK member, a group of centres which is a leading provider of IFY programmes, with links to around 20 universities, has given us the estimate that around 75–80% of their current IFY intake have an English level of A2–B1, meaning that these students would not be able to gain T4 visas for IFY courses if the level required was raised to B2. If that was the case across the whole of pre- university courses (pre-sessional English for academic purposes and IFY programmes) then there would be a loss of 35–40% of international students going into universities. At a time when many universities rely on the higher fee income from international students to maintain course options and whole departments, this would have a serious impact and it is no exaggeration to say that the financial stability of some universities might be threatened. The level of English required should either be set at A2, meaning that students would have a year to go up two levels to achieve university entrance standard, or as an alternative the extended 11-month Student Visitor visa should be given one entitlement, which is to be able to switch in the UK to a T4 visa for the purposes of going on to a degree (or degree equivalent, NQF level 6) course. 5. In contrast, we support the thrust of Question 18, which suggests raising the standards of accreditation and inspection. We do not think that the present accreditation arrangements are fit for purpose. For example, a significant number of colleges which have had accreditation withdrawn, or have failed a first inspection, with one of the approved accrediting bodies, have subsequently gained or have retained accreditation by another approved accrediting body. There is clearly no consistency of standards, which is hardly surprising since the different accrediting bodies have adopted different criteria and have different teams of inspectors. This is an unsatisfactory situation which needs to be addressed. We can see no good reason for there to be more than one approved accrediting body for independent tertiary colleges and one for English language centres, and indeed there may be a case for these to be unified or at least to carry out combined inspections where independent colleges also deliver English language courses. A consequence of improving the accreditation arrangements and raising standards might well be that those colleges which have had accreditation withdrawn, but have had the fallback of getting accreditation from a different body, finally lose accreditation and their T4 sponsor licence. That in turn would have the effect of improving the UK’s reputation for quality, which is our main selling point in the competitive world of international education. If that also led to some reduction incidentally in the numbers of international students coming to the UK, that would be an acceptable consequence as indicated in our argument in paragraph 3 above. 6. We now wish to comment more generically. First, the current consultation does not take adequately into account the progress which has been made in tightening up the student visa system over the last three years in particular. There were over 4,000 colleges on the DIUS Register of Education and Training Providers. There are now fewer than 2,000 on the Register of Sponsors. Colleges are limited as to their Confirmation of Acceptance of Studies annual allocation, and without a CAS a student cannot get a visa. The electronic Sponsor Management System gives UKBA a wholly new dimension of control and security. The SMS and CAS together have removed one whole area of visa fraud through forged enrolment letters. Students now have to give biometrics as part of their visa application, which cuts down on impersonation and other forms of identity fraud. Other control measures in the last year have been the Highly Trusted Sponsor scheme, and the limiting of lower level courses to HTS colleges, and the introduction of secure English language tests for non-degree students. In essence we can see no good reason for most of the other restrictions now proposed, and no reason why such blanket restrictions should be imposed. If there are still areas of abuse, then it is surely possible to target those specifically: for example, if a college is not fulfilling adequately its duties as a sponsor, or its recruitment practices are leading to high rates of student drop-out and absconding, then UKBA should use the powers it has to degrade that institution to a B rating and/or remove it from the Register of Sponsors. This would be a far better approach than in effect penalizing all satisfactory Sponsors for the poor performance of a relative few. Equally, blanket requirements on students (such as the proposal in Question 8 that students wanting a visa for a new course should return home to apply) are likely to be highly discouraging and act as a considerable disincentive to come to study in the UK in the first place. In our response to the consultation we shall be arguing that UKBA needs to consider much more specific, targeted and graduated action. Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 67

Conclusion The UK student visa system has been changed radically and almost continuously over the past three years. While most of the changes have led to greater control, the pace and unpredictability of change and the prospect of more is not helping make the UK look an attractive and welcoming study abroad destination. We believe that the proposed changes do not have an adequate policy rationale and their impact could potentially be severe. It would be preferable for UKBA to address any remaining areas of abuse in a more graduated and targeted way, which it has the powers to do. January 2011

Supplementary written evidence submitted by English UK (SV17a) Here is some background for the Committee as requested on our Partner Agency scheme. In effect this is a form of accreditation based upon a) track record of being a reliable, efficient and honest agent (attested by references from a minimum of five member centres, plus our own database records) and b) a certain amount of “knowledge” through the training scheme run by the British Council, with material we have provided covering English language courses. Agents have to sign up to a code of practice covering ethical business practices. The first document has a chart which shows the number of agencies which have so far been awarded Partner Agency status. There is more demand than we can at present accommodate for this, and it is clearly fulfilling a need. We would comment that it is in some ways easier for an association like ourselves to set up a scheme of this kind because it is our members who work with agents on a day to day basis, and know which ones are excellent and which merely adequate. Also since the whole visa system became “high stakes”, centres have to monitor their agents’ performance very carefully, since they are in effect delegating their sponsor licence status to the agents—and if the agents send bogus or poor quality students, a centre might well lose its sponsor licence, and in many if not all cases that would lead swiftly to bankruptcy or closure since it would no longer be able to recruit and enrol visa-national Tier 4 students. We believe that the government and the British Council have given some consideration to “licensing” agents, but have decided that they are not minded to pursue this because in some countries it would be regarded as the British Government interfering in the internal business affairs of other countries and might lead to accusations of a form of “imperialism”. If agents in a number of countries were prevented by their governments from being licensed by the British Government or an agency such as the BC, this would make it impossible to have a globally-accessible scheme which all agents could participate in on a level footing. We understand the concerns and the reluctance to proceed is one reason why we have taken the initiative of the Partner Agency scheme. February 2011

Written evidence submitted by Universities UK (SV28) Executive Summary Universities are international organisations and are the largest volume users of the immigration system bringing in thousands of international staff, students and visitors every year. The Government’s proposals to restrict and reduce students’ temporary migration to the UK are problematic for universities in a number of ways. The proposed blanket restrictions on English language qualiﬁcations and testing methods, work placements, progression and dependents would drastically reduce university income, interfere in academic matters and undermine institutional autonomy. The progression of students from other parts of the UK’s education sector into higher education institutions would be severely affected and the attractiveness of the UK’s universities would be diminished. Universities are already reporting prospective students and partners being deterred by the proposals published in December so it is likely that the current unfocused and far-reaching proposals will discourage well qualiﬁed students from coming to the UK rather than target abuse. It would be more sensible for the Government to properly use the Highly Trusted Sponsor (HTS) arrangements and actually trust HTS institutions to recruit, admit and retain students appropriately, while restricting the activities and entitlements of non-HTS institutions and their students. The differentiated sponsorship system should be used to trust HTS institutions as the award of HTS status requires very high compliance levels. HTS institutions should be able to determine their own language requirements as that is an academic matter for each institution. It is estimated that between 30% and 50% of international students joining university programmes prepare for study by taking a range of preparatory programmes in the UK (such as English for Academic Purposes (EAP), pre-sessional and international foundation programmes) run by universities or run in partnership with other providers in the UK. Ev 68 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

HTS institutions should not be required to align their programmes on the academic/work placement proportions proposed. HTS institutions should not be required to provide specific evidence that a student is progressing from one course to another. If they are supporting a further visa application by a student by providing a CAS that should be considered sufficient. Students attending HTS institutions should not have to leave the country between programmes. Students on student visitor visas at HTS institutions wishing to move into degree programmes at HTS institutions should be able to move into Tier 4 in the UK and not be required to leave the country to apply for a further visa. It is concerning that students are being considered to be economic migrants subject to the Government’s plans to limit migration when they are coming here to study not to live or work permanently and are required to support themselves without recourse to public funds. The Government’s proposals to reduce international student numbers are in direct opposition to the ambitions and critical need of many universities to increase their international student numbers. This is particularly important as public funding for HE is decreasing and income diversification by universities is being pursued and encouraged by Government. Universities UK would also wish to highlight concerns about the availability of data and the data being used by UKBA to advance some of the proposals in the student immigration consultation. While the consultation draws on a number of UKBA research reports to provide justification for some proposals there is still a lack of basic data about student visas and who they are issued to. For example, we do not know how many visas and visa extensions were issued to students studying at UK universities, we do not know how many Post Study Work visas were issued to graduates from UK universities and we do not know how many dependants accompanied students at UK universities. Without this data it is very difficult to have a properly informed discussion about the Government’s proposals. The research reports used by UKBA are problematic in a number of ways. The Migrant Journey report7 found that 21% of students who entered the UK in 2004 were still in the UK in 2009 and this is used to support arguments for “breaking the link” between coming to the UK on a temporary basis and more permanent settlement and as evidence that significant numbers of students are seeking to stay in the UK for long periods. This appears to overlook the fact that students may be on five or six year programmes, may move from undergraduate to postgraduate programmes and may have legitimately switched into another immigration category with approval from UKBA. The operational assessment of Tier 1 research8 includes people who have used the Post Study Work route and found, from a very limited sample, that significant numbers of Post Study Work visa holders were in unskilled work. However, the definitions of skilled and unskilled work and salary levels used by UKBA are different to those applied to UK/EU graduates in the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education survey. Further analysis of the 2009 Labour Force Survey (LFS), used in the UKBA consultation to suggest that international students may be working more than the 21 hours per week during term allowed under their visa conditions, has indicated that the LFS sample of international students who are working more than 21 hours a week relates to 31 respondents. Although many of the proposals are extremely concerning we welcome the emphasis on strengthening the accreditation arrangements for private providers and we would wish to emphasise the need for education quality to be the leading criteria used to determine the ability of a sponsor institution to bring international students into the UK. Universities want to have positive and focused discussions on immigration matters with UKBA not for UKBA to provide advice beyond their remit on academic matters such as language competency and student progression. UKBA’s efforts should be directed at targeting and minimising abuse rather than introduce greater complexity and upheaval to a system that has already experienced regular rules changes despite operating for less than two years.

Universities UK Universities UK is the representative body for universities in the UK and has 133 members across the UK. The current President is Professor Steve Smith, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Exeter, and the Chief Executive is Nicola Dandridge.

UK Universities and International Students Universities are international organisations that depend on global mobility and compete in a global market. The UK’s universities have an excellent reputation for high quality teaching and research. To maintain and enhance this reputation our universities need to be able to attract and recruit international students effectively and without disproportionate regulation and bureaucracy. Our established competitors such as the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, France and Germany together with developing higher education systems in Singapore, China and India are competing ﬁercely with us for international talent and the UK will lose out by placing further restrictions on the mobility of international students. 7 The Migrant Journey, Home Ofﬁce Research Report 43, 2010. 8 Points based system Tier 1: an operational assessment. International Group, UKBA October 2010. Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 69

In 2008–09 there were 251,310 international (non-EU) students in UK higher education institutions. These numbers have increased in recent years with a 106% increase in international student enrolments between 1999–2000 and 2008–09.9 The UK has some of the most internationalised universities amongst OECD countries, with international students (defined by domicile) accounting for 14.7% of all higher education enrolments in 2008.10 UK universities welcome students from over 190 countries, second only to the US in the diversity and total number of international students. The latest Times Higher Education World University rankings use the number of international students and staff as a measure of success. Within the full-time postgraduate student community international students comprised 44.5% of total student numbers in 2008–09. In many strategically important subject areas international students sustain the UK’s research base with international postgraduate students comprising over 62% of the total postgraduate community in engineering, 63% in mathematics and computer science, 27% in physical sciences and just under 24% in biological sciences.11 International students in the UK report very high levels of satisfaction. The International Student Barometer, an international survey of international students in UK universities, found that over 93% of international students in the UK were highly satisfied or satisfied with the expertise of the academics that taught them with very high levels of satisfaction reported for IT services, the Students Union and Student Support Services. Income from international student fees provided 9% of the sector’s income in 2008–09, in cash terms over £2.2 billion. International students make a significant contribution to their local economies, in 2007–08 off- campus expenditure by international students was around £2.3 billion.12 International students in other parts of the education sector, many of whom progress into higher education, also make a significant economic contribution to the UK.

Government Proposals on Changes to the Student Migration Route The Government is consulting on changes to the student migration route from April 2011 that will seek to minimise abuse of the student route and also to reduce the number of international students in the UK. The Government’s Programme for Government stated that: — “We will introduce an annual limit on the number of non-EU economic migrants admitted into the UK to live and work. We will consider jointly the mechanism for implementing the limit. — We will introduce new measures to minimise abuse of the immigration system, for example via student routes, and will tackle human trafficking as a priority.” It is interesting to note that the annual limit was only referred to in relation to economic migrants who come to the UK to live and work and students were not mentioned in relation to the limit on economic migrants. It is unfortunate that the government is including students within its definition of “migrant”13 as students are only temporarily resident in the UK, pay their full costs and have no recourse to public funds. All UK universities support the Government’s attempts to minimise abuse as fraudulent use of the student route damages the reputation of the UK as a high quality destination for international students. All universities take their responsibilities as sponsor institutions very seriously and have invested significant resources in new staff, IT systems and other systems to enable them to comply with the requirements of Tier 4 of the points- based immigration system. UK universities do not support the reductions in international student numbers. International education is major business success for the UK, generating billions of pounds in knock-on output for the UK economy and supporting thousands of jobs throughout the UK.14 At a time of economic difficulties it is strange that the Government is proposing to undermine a successful export business with a consequent negative impact on the UK economy and jobs. While the Government appears to be trying to “protect” higher education from changes by potentially focusing changes on other parts of the education sector there appears to be a fundamental lack of understanding by Government of the interdependency of the higher education sector on other parts of the sector as students progress from one sector to another, from English language or further education into higher education or from undergraduate to postgraduate. It must also be noted that while the Government may be seeking to “protect” the current numbers of international students in higher education the number of international students will need to grow as institutions prioritise international activities over the next few years. The effect of cuts in public funding to universities mean that income from international students is critical to institutions’ and will need to grow if institutions are to survive. 9 Patterns of higher education institutions in the UK: tenth report. Universities UK, 2010. 10 Education at a Glance 2010: OECD Indicators. OECD, 2010. 11 Universities UK analysis of HESA student record. 12 The impact of universities on the UK economy. Universities UK, 2009. 13 The Government uses the definition of “migrant” as anyone who is in the UK for more than 12 months. 14 Knock-on output generated throughout the UK economy from international students estimated at £3.26 billion and knock-on employment generated equivalent to 27,868 full time jobs in 2007–08—The impact of universities on the UK economy. Universities UK, 2009. Ev 70 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

Home Affairs Committee Inquiry Areas of Focus Whether the cuts should be limited to certain types of courses (eg pre-degree level) Restricting access by international students to programmes below degree level may appear of limited importance to universities but from analysis of HESA, UCAS and other data it is clear that a very signiﬁcant number of international students in higher education were previously studying at a lower level at another type of education provider in the UK. The education sector in the UK is interdependent with progression routes from one sector to another enabling students to undertake more of their education in the UK with beneﬁts for academic performance, immigration compliance and income to the UK. It would be more appropriate for UKBA to use its Highly Trusted Sponsor arrangements to differentiate between sponsors and sponsor entitlements rather than simply apply blanket restrictions on levels of study. There is much pre-degree level provision in the UK that is high quality and this should be supported as a successful activity and students who enter at pre-degree level appropriately supported to progress through the UK’s education system into our universities.

The impact different levels of cuts might have on the various sectors The proposals to restrict access to below degree provision by international students would have an rapid impact on all sectors of education. The most immediate impact will be on non higher education providers initially but higher education institutions will be affected very quickly as signiﬁcant numbers of international students progress every year from other parts of the education system into higher education.

The impact, if any, that reductions in student visas might have on the UK’s standing in the world International students are of value academically, culturally and ﬁnancially to many parts of the UK and also to its international standing in research, innovation, business, trade and diplomacy. The reputation of the UK as a welcoming destination for international students that has been supported and invested in not only by universities but also by the UK Government will be diminished and in some places lost if the Government’s proposals are implemented. It will take many years to restore our reputation as international student mobility is not an activity that can be simply turned on again. Policy changes that are nuanced for UK audiences are likely to be understood very differently overseas and the proposals currently being consulted on have already been noticed and commented on overseas. Universities are receiving feedback from applicants and overseas partners and the British Council expressing concern about the proposals and indicating that the UK is becoming increasingly less attractive as a study destination. Obviously if the proposals are implemented then this damage will deepen.

Whether cuts in student visas would have any effect on the decisions of highly qualified graduates to conduct research or take up teaching posts in the UK Several of the proposals are likely to have a direct effect on the decisions of highly qualified graduates to conduct research or take up teaching posts in the UK as well as the negative effects of a general perception that the UK is not welcoming to international students. The proposal to end the Post Study Work route will cause difficulties for the movement of international graduates from the student visa system into the employment routes.15 A number of universities advise newly qualified PhD graduates to use the Post Study Work route to enable them to take up post doctoral positions at UK universities. This has become increasingly important over the last few months with the very tight restrictions on Tier 1 and Tier 2 visas and the closure of Tier 1 and the numerical limit on Tier 2 certificates will only add to difficulties for universities trying to enable highly talented graduates to move into academic work. The Post Study Work route is an important mechanism for these highly talented and often highly sought after individuals to remain in the UK. The proposal to prohibit dependents from working in the UK is likely to have a particular effect on research students who are more likely to have dependents than students at other levels. If dependents are unable to work, not primarily for financial reasons (although that is likely to be important) but to do something “useful” with their time in the UK, then prospective research students may decide not to come to the UK. International students make a particular contribution to the UK’s capacity in strategically important subject areas such as engineering, mathematics and computer sciences, physical sciences and biological sciences and if they are deterred from coming it will have a extremely detrimental impact on the UK’s research and teaching activity in these areas. 15 Just under 20% of new non-EU entrants to the academic workforce at UK HEIs in 2008–09 were previously international students in the UK. Universities UK analysis of HESA staff data. Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 71

Whether the post study route should be continued The Post Study Work route needs further analysis rather than closure as it is a valuable route for international graduates to build on their academic experience with a period of work. It is a very useful part of the UK offer to international students and has helped to create positive views among prospective students. Any changes, particularly if they affect current students who had been recruited with an understanding that Post Study Work would be available on graduation, will be received very negatively by international students and prospective international students. Universities UK suggests that it would be appropriate to look in more detail at the people using the Post Study Work route in terms of institutions attended and qualifications achieved. This data has not been provided by UKBA so there is rather limited information on what types of applicants have been using the route. The Government suggests that the route is not providing a route into skilled work for international graduates drawing on an analysis of a group of Tier 1 users but there are problems with their analysis as they apply different definitions of skilled work and skilled work salaries to those applied to UK and EU graduates six months after graduation. As the Migration Advisory Committee commented in their report in 2009 on Tier 116 the Post Study Work route is currently available to people who have attended over 700 education institutions in the UK, which is a significantly larger number than the 165 higher education institutions in the UK.17 Rather than close the route based on very limited evidence it would be appropriate to undertake further analysis and then use that analysis to take properly informed decisions on mechanisms to enable international graduates from UK universities to move into the labour market. Possible options could include limiting Post Study Work to graduates from Highly Trusted Sponsor institutions or to postgraduates.

The educational routes through which students come to the UK to study at degree level; and Universities UK can only comment on students entering UK higher education institutions and not on those studying “at degree level”. There is no comprehensive data on the different educational routes used by students to enter UK higher education institutions but analysis of different data sources provides some indications of the use of different routes. Universities UK has analysed HESA data to try to provide an indication of progression volumes into and within the higher education sector. The figures outlined below relate to students with a known region of previous institution and as 63% of international entrants in 2007–08 had an unknown region of their previous institution, this field is not a mandatory field for data collection, these figures are likely to be significant underestimates and need to be considered as an indication of likely mobility rather than robust data. The HESA data indicates that for first year non-EU domiciled undergraduates at UK HEIs in 2007–08), 46% or 9,684 were recorded as progressing from another UK education institution. The HESA data indicates that for non-EU PGT entrants in 2007–08 33% or 21,889 were recorded as having some previous experience of HE in the UK. The HESA data indicates that for non-EU PGR entrants in 2007–08 46.8% or 4,370 were recorded as having some previous experience of HE in the UK. In total this data indicates that in 2007–08 almost 36,000 international entrants progressed from another education institution in the UK into their chosen programme and chosen institution. Analysis by Universities UK of UCAS application data in 2009 indicates that the proportion of all non-EU applicants to UCAS who applied through UCAS centres in the UK was 75.6%. Universities UK, in partnership with other organisations in the higher education sector, is gathering additional information on the numbers of international students who are on specific “pathway programmes” in the UK that operate in partnership with UK universities. While no overall figures are available yet it is clear that the number of students on these programmes has increased significantly in recent years and at least a third of international students at many UK universities were on such programmes prior to entry to universities.18 Progression through the UK education system is beneficial in a number of ways. Students gain a better understanding of the UK education system and approach to study, this is particularly important as many overseas school systems end at 17, and are able to adapt to higher education study more quickly than those coming directly from overseas. Progression through the UK system also delivers more income to the UK and supports a larger number of jobs in other parts of the education system. UKBA should have some data on students who move through the UK education system as they will need to make new visa applications at certain points but as far as Universities UK is aware this data is not publicly available. 16 Analysis of the points-based system: Tier 1. Migration Advisory Committee, December 2009. 17 Higher education in facts and figures. Universities UK, Summer 2010. 18 Data will be available by the end of January 2011 on student numbers in these programmes. Ev 72 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

Despite the lack of comprehensive data it is clear that the different routes from other parts of the UK education sector into higher education institutions are very important.

International Comparisons Compared to the UK there has been much tighter control of private sector education institutions wishing to recruit international students in Australia, New Zealand and to some extent Canada. In those countries public sector institutions are trusted to comply with immigration requirements and allowed to recruit, admit and retain international students in accordance with their existing policies and processes as their immigration authorities recognise that they are already highly regulated institutions. The focus for private provider compliance is based in ensuring that their provision is of appropriate quality and that the international student experience is supported. Immigration compliance follows from ensuring quality provision and the student experience. Canada has introduced a similar scheme to the Post Study Work route that enables graduates from recognised Canadian higher education institutions to apply to stay in Canada for a period after graduation. It may be appropriate to consider the problems experienced by both the US and Australia following decisions to restrict international student mobility. The US experience was particularly painful as changes introduced following September 11, 2001 contributed to a 20% reduction in the number of international student visas issued by the US in 2002 compared to 2001 with consequent reductions in international student enrolments. International student enrolments in the US only started to increase in 2005–06 following re-adjustments to the visa system.19 As a paper published by Georgetown University commented:20 The U.S. visa system cannot alone be blamed for a decline in international student enrollment, but addressing the problems with visa policy and practice may create an opportunity to work toward reversing this decline. It is essential to consider both the real and perceived deﬁciencies of the U.S. visa system when working to improve and explain visa policy and practice. The perception of the United States as unwelcoming—which is in part perpetuated by cumbersome visa processes—inspires an ill will against America that the United States can hardly afford. The Australian experience is more recent and its long-term impact not yet clear but the Australian Government issued nearly 16% fewer student visas in 2009–10 compared to 2008–0921 following changes to the visa system in early 2010. These changes were aimed at preventing students gaining permanent residence through lower-skilled vocational student immigration routes but resulted in a drop in demand for all types of Australian educational institutions from international students. Following representations by education institutions the Australian Government eased the requirements in December 2010. January 2011

Written evidence submitted UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA) (SV29) UKCISA This paper is submitted by the UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA), the national advisory body serving the interests of international students and those who work with them. It has some 550 institutional members including every UK university, the majority of higher and further education colleges in the public sector which are active internationally and a range of private, specialist and representative bodies. It is governed by a Board of Trustees, chaired by the former Vice-Chancellor and Principal of the University of Stirling. Its President is Baroness Usha Prashar. The submission records UKCISA’s views but these are largely informed by and shared with over 30 education sector organisations which met on 10 January to consider the government’s proposals (see attached Appendix).

Summary of Key Points — The government is not only proposing to introduce further measures to eradicate abuse but also, we understand, to reduce by a signiﬁcant margin, the total number of international students coming to the UK as a contribution to reducing net migration. 19 Students on the Move: The Future of International Students in the United States. American Council on Education Issue Brief, 2006. 20 Voices of Hope, Voices of Frustration: Deciphering US Admission and Visa Policies for International Students—Janine Keil, Institute for the Study of Diplomacy, Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University, 2006 www12.georgetown.edu/sfs/isd/ISD_Visa_Report.pdf 21 Fact Sheet 50—Overseas Students in Australia. Department of Immigration and Citizenship, Australian Government, 2010. Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 73

— We support any properly targeted measures to ensure students coming to the UK are genuine but cannot support the second objective—which we note does not appear in the Coalition Agreement. It would, we believe, be damaging to a highly successful industry after a decade of government support for increased recruitment, undermine that investment and result in a very substantial loss of UK earnings, jobs and international reputation. — The majority of the proposals are, we fear, as likely to discourage well qualified students from coming to the UK (the “brightest and the best”) as they are to discourage abuse. — It is unfortunate that the government has chosen to use the concept of “migrant” (which technically includes students in the UK for more than 12 months). These individuals, only temporarily resident, paying their full costs and having no recourse to public funds have, we would argue, minimal impact on public services. — It is difficult to see therefore how a possibly substantial reduction in their number can create any advantage for the UK whilst jeopardising millions in income. — Much of the data used to justify the proposals is, we believe, inaccurate or misleading and largely pre-dates the impact of major rule changes introduced last year when the system was significantly tightened. — We would therefore recommend, as the Committee did in its earlier report, that effort would be far better focused on additional compliance and enforcement of colleges which remain suspect— and measures to strengthen quality controls and accreditation—rather than yet further technical amendments to the rules so soon after the substantial changes made only in March, April and July 2010. — If the system could place greater trust in the newly established Highly Trusted Sponsor (HTS) scheme and their students, this would enable UKBA to target its resources more effectively on identifying and dealing with any abuse. The scheme needs however to be reviewed, in association with sector bodies, to improve criteria, guidance, confidence and transparency.

Value of International Students 1. The Committee will already know the various estimates and elements of the value of international students to the UK. The figure, in financial terms is often put at some £5 billion but this is largely for public sector higher education alone. When earnings from the private sector are added (including language teaching), independent schools and consultancy, estimates increase towards £10 billion. These figures are widely documented and accepted both within the sector and by government (including the Home Office). 2. Amongst a number of other benefits we note that many of the main source countries for student recruitment are also the UK’s key trading partners (China, India, the USA) and the potential damage of weakening links with these regions if numbers were significantly reduced.

Students and Net Migration 3. UKCISA recognises the government’s commitment to reduce net migration but believes that students, being temporary and not “economic migrants”, should be considered within a separate category and outside the technical margins for assessing net migration. — Non-EU international students pay the full cost of their education in the UK, cover (and have to prove they can cover) the full cost of their maintenance in the UK, have only very limited rights to work with a prohibition on filling permanent vacancies, have “no recourse to public funds” and can therefore not claim state benefits or housing etc and have visas only for a limited purpose and for a limited period. — Students are also, of all the categories of “migrant”, least likely to be accompanied by dependants and least likely to move to settlement.22 4. It is difficult to see, therefore, what burden legitimate international students might be perceived to put on the state and why any ceiling or reduction in their numbers would create any advantage to the UK.

Home Office Statistics, Analysis and Commentary 5. Home Office statistics, statements and “research reports” produced over the last few months have on occasions been partial, confusing and at times misleading and do not, we believe, provide a sound evidence base on which to make some of the wide ranging—and even radical—changes proposed. — The much quoted figure of 489,000 students entering the UK in 2009 masks—as the Consultation footnote points out—the inclusion of 198,000 “student visitors” (those coming for less than six months), a category which was only introduced in 2007 and who would largely, prior to that, have been counted not as students but “ordinary visitors”. The figure is therefore inflated. 22 The Migrant Journey, Home Office Research Report 43, rds.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs10/horr43c.pdf Ev 74 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

— A figure of 139,000 is often quoted as “student net migration”—or students 76% of total net migration—which we believe is misleading. Many students leaving the UK are not logged at all and, as the Migration Advisory Committee report points out (page 67) “Students will come to the UK for reason of formal study, but once they graduate may leave the UK for work-related reasons and be counted in the work-related outflow”. — The fact that two in every five students coming to the UK are studying at sub degree level— announced by the Home Office as something of a disclosure—is of no surprise to the education sector (or education departments) and reflects merely that UK institutions offer a ladder of world class qualifications at various levels. — This fact is critical as various estimates from Universities UK and British Council suggest that some 40% of students entering higher education are recruited from sub degree courses in the UK. If this “pipeline” was restricted—as appears to be suggested—and preference given to degree students only, the impact could be very substantial indeed. — Drawing conclusions about possible abuse in the private sector by comparing compliance in a relatively small number of private colleges under investigation with universities with Highly Trusted status does not seem to be methodologically sound or helpful. — The 2009 Labour Force Survey (Para 7.2) suggesting students extensively work more than their permitted hours has also never before been cited as giving any reliable insight into this issue. (On closer examination it appears that out of a sample of over 100,000 respondents, just 31 non-EEA full-time students were found to be working more than 22 hours per week). 6. Running through the government’s Consultation document—and associated “research”—are two concepts which most in the education sector would dispute. Firstly that sub degree programmes (including English language tuition) are “of less value” to the individual and to the UK than degree programmes and above. Secondly, that following the major tightening of the rules in 2010, there is still widespread abuse.

2010 Tightening of the Rules 7. The full controls of Tier 4 were only implemented in late February 2010 with the introduction of the secure online CAS (Certificate of Acceptance for Studies) system and mandatory reporting on arrival and attendance. Data prior to this, when a paper based system was in use (and open to abuse), is both unreliable and unrepresentative. 8. The other changes introduced later in the year—and following the then Prime Minister’s Review of Tier 4—included: — Restrictions on level 3 courses and those with work placements; — The establishment of the Highly Trusted Sponsor scheme with robust criteria; — Secure, mandatory English Language tests (for non degree students); — Raising the minimum levels of English to B1; and — Restrictions on dependants and work entitlements. 9. After multiple changes the system is now working reasonably well and needs most a period of stability for students, institutions and indeed for the UKBA whose staff often find it difficult to keep up with continual changes and where resources are already fully stretched.

Detailed Comments on Key Proposals 10. The vast majority of the measures proposed appear to be relatively blunt instruments (such as raising still further the minimum level of English, forcing all students to go home to apply for extensions, withdrawing all work entitlements for dependents, limiting part-time work for all students and the closure of the Post-Study work scheme). They are as likely to discourage the “brightest and the best” from coming to the UK in the future as they are to eradicate remaining areas of abuse.

Levels of English 11. The raising of the minimum standard of English from B1 to B2 (approximately “A” level) will substantially damage recruitment from apparently low risk countries such as Korea, Japan, Taiwan and Saudi Arabia but have far less impact on those presented as higher risk (largely English medium) countries such as India, Pakistan and Nigeria. — A spokesman for one of the four major organisations recruiting students for university access and foundation programmes (INTO University Partnerships) was recently quoted as saying that 70% of the 20,000 students they bring to the UK annually would be rejected on that basis with the loss of £120 million in fees alone. Applying this more widely to others offering similar courses would bring the loss to £250 million. Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 75

— There is also very substantial opposition from institutions—including top universities—to measures which undermine their autonomy to make appropriate admissions decisions. At the very least exemptions should be made for HTS and government sponsored students.

Returning Home to Apply 12. We recognise the government’s ambition to break the psychological link between periods of Leave but to force students to close their affairs in the UK (banks, accommodation, luggage etc) and to return home to re-apply is plainly impractical. It would merely result in both a massive loss of “business” and an inability of the UKBA overseas to process so many new requests in a tight summer period. 13. “Progression” within the UK system from “A” levels to degree or degree to postgraduate studies etc is one of the key attractions.

Dependants 14. The proposal to withdraw rights to be accompanied by dependants—for students studying for less that 12 months—will affect only a small number as only one in 10 students is accompanied but will have a disproportionate impact on more mature students and women from the Arab or Islamic world where it is unacceptable for women to live away from their spouses.

Work Entitlements for Dependants 15. Very few of the “brightest and the best” applying to leading universities for especially postgraduate and research programmes (sometimes lasting three or four years) would come to the UK if their often well qualiﬁed partners were forbidden to work.

Part-time Work During Studies 16. The proposal to restrict part-time work for the students themselves, during the working week, to campus employment only but then any hours during the week-ends would be more confusing to employers (with both “campus” and “week-ends” difﬁcult to deﬁne. It would be preferable to retain the current rules of 20 hours per week during term time—for degree students and above—and 10 hours for others.

Post-Study Work 17. The threatened abolition of the Post-Study Work scheme is generating particularly bitter and intense opposition from students already in the UK. They believe this would be a substantial breach of trust and that they would have been seriously misled if applied to any who had already invested many thousands of pounds on UK degree courses (or above) with the prospect and on the understanding of being able to stay on for work experience to cement the value of their UK degrees in the eyes of employers overseas. — We note that the Migration Advisory Committee, in an earlier report, said they had found “no evidence of job displacement” of UK graduates and so it is difficult to see the urgent need for change. — If amendments are made we believe therefore that they should not be introduced until January 2012 at the earliest to protect those currently on one year or the final year of courses. — The general view amongst the sector—and we understand in business—is that PSW/work experience is professionally essential in some subject areas (such as architecture) and that some form of PSW must be retained in the longer term for those with postgraduate qualifications who would not have the earnings to gain sufficient points for Tier 2.

Simpler Procedures 18. The proposal for a simplification of application processes in low risk countries appears entirely sensible. There would however be objections and concerns—in terms of foreign policy and a risk of racial stereotyping— if it appeared that all individuals from particular countries were being seen as high risk. 19. It would, we believe, be preferable to support the second option of introducing a fast track and simplified process for students with offers from Highly Trusted Sponsors. 20. This approach could then be extended more widely and also used for students in the UK who apply for short extensions in order to complete their current courses—who currently have to undergo a process which is more complex, more expensive and lengthier than when they first applied overseas. This could create substantial economies for both students and the Home Office. 21. There may also be much potential in looking again at simpler procedures for those students who had already paid substantial deposits to UK institutions. Ev 76 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

Improved Accreditation 22. The second area which we would support would be for greater consistency amongst accreditation bodies (ﬁve of whom are licensed by the UKBA). At an earlier stage Ofsted chaired a “Consistency and Standards Group” which ensured processes and standards were aligned—and to a degree enforced—but no formal meetings have been held in the last 12 months. 23. This function should be re-introduced or alternative arrangements made but under the direction of both the UKBA who have expertise in compliance and the Education Departments—and their devolved equivalents and specialist agencies—who have expertise in matters of educational standards.

Overall Impact and Recommendations 24. Taken as a whole, we believe that the measures proposed if implemented, would make the UK a far less attractive destination for legitimate international students and undermine the global success of this major export industry. 25. They would, therefore, in a technical sense, help to achieve the government’s target of a reduction in overall net migration (within these definitions) but at very real cost to the UK and could jeopardise years of investment at a time when UK universities and colleges need income most. 26. We would recommend, as the Committee did in its earlier report that if eradicating abuse is the main objective, priority should be given to further efforts to minimise remaining areas of abuse through tighter inspection, enforcement and compliance of those institutions at the margins, where real risk exists, rather than yet more technical rule changes enforced on all. 27. We would recommend that if the UK wishes to continue to welcome well qualified students in large numbers, procedures for the majority of applicants should be simplified, freeing up resources which could then be better focused on areas of risk. 28. Finally we would recommend that if substantial changes are to be implemented, they do not come into force until 1 November 2011 as large numbers of (well qualified) students have already accepted offers, on the basis of the current rules, for courses commencing this academic year. 29. We would also encourage the Committee to enquire whether the government has, in any way, set a numerical target or limit on the number of student visas to be issued in the future or undertaken internal modelling based on a set figure and if so, what it is—as none is mentioned in the Consultation. 30. We would also then encourage the Committee to ensure that a full Impact Assessment is undertaken on those numbers—not just on migration numbers but on UK jobs, income and reputation—and made publically available for proper scrutiny and debate prior to any rule changes. January 2010

APPENDIX REPRESENTATIVES ATTENDING UKCISA MEETING ON 10 JANUARY 2010 TO DISCUSS THE UKBA “STUDENT IMMIGRATION SYSTEM” CONSULTATION Accreditation Service for International Colleges Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services Association of Business Executives UK Association of Colleges Association of Independent Higher Education Providers Association of MBAs British Accreditation Council British Association of Lecturers in English for Academic Purposes British Council British Universities International Liaison Association Cambridge ESOL Conservatoires UK English UK ETS Global, UK Federation of Awarding Bodies Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 77

GuildHE Immigration Law Practitioners Association INTO University Partnerships National Association of Student Employment Services National Union of Students Navitas UK Northern Consortium UK Pearson Language Tests Study Group UK Study UK UCAS UKCISA Policy Committee UK NARIC UNITE—accommodation providers Universities Migration and Law Network Universities UK (UUK)

Supplementary written evidence submitted by Universities UK (SV28a) Following on from the oral evidence given by myself and Professor Edward Acton on 1 February 2011, I am writing with the additional information requested by the Home Affairs Select Committee during the evidence session. The Committee requested further details on the post-study work opportunities that are available to international students who choose to study in some of the UK’s biggest global competitors. As you are well aware the UK’s Tier 1 Post Study Work route may be closed; a matter which is of substantial concern to the university sector as post-study work opportunities form part of the overall package that attracts international students to study in the UK. A recent survey of international students, conducted by the London School of Economics, showed that 56% of respondents cited entitlement to post-study work as a factor in their decision to study in the UK. A number of the UK’s biggest competitors continue to offer post-study work opportunities to international graduates of their universities. Some specific examples are summarised below. Within Canada individuals are eligible to apply for a work permit under the “Post-Graduation Work Permit Program”. A work permit under the “Post-Graduation Work Permit Program” allows individuals to gain Canadian work experience but cannot be valid for longer than the student’s original course of study. For example, an individual graduating from a four-year degree will normally be eligible for a work permit that is valid for up to but no longer than three years. In Australia, international graduates can apply to extend their stay to work in Australia. There are a number of work visas including professional and skilled migrants, migrants sponsored by employers and regional employment (encouraging people to work outside the major cities). In the professional and skilled migrants category there is value given to having certain Australian qualifications. International graduates who have studied at German institutions can apply to stay in Germany for up to a year after completing their course. In New Zealand, there are several post-study work options available to international students. The options available depend upon whether an individual has a formal job offer, whether they are working towards obtaining membership or registration from a New Zealand professional association or whether they have no job offer but simply wish to extend their time in New Zealand to look for work. Students with a job offer of employment relevant to their qualification may be eligible for a work visa for a maximum period of two years; or three years if working towards membership or registration with a professional association. Students without a job offer may be eligible for a “Graduate Job Search Work Visa” which allows them to stay for a maximum of 12 months. Once they have found a job they can then apply for a further visa for up to two or three years under the Study to Work category. The Committee also requested further information on the statement made that students paying a deposit prior to taking up their studies in the UK are more likely to take their studies seriously. I am unaware of any formal research that supports this theory but would like to draw the Committee’s attention to the following information. Ev 78 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

A number of institutions already charge deposits to international students. A Universities UK survey in 2010 showed that 43% of respondents required deposits from international students and that 45% of these required a deposit prior to a Confirmation of Acceptance of Study being issued to an international student to enable them to apply for a visa. Anecdotally some institutions report that the payment of deposits can help to filter out students who are not completely committed to taking up a place at the course to which they have applied, as well as providing some protection to the institution itself by reducing the risk of the student not turning up to the course. In addition some students welcome the payment of a deposit as additional security that they have a confirmed place on a popular course. The payment of a deposit can be an indicator that a student is serious about coming to the UK to study. February 2011

Written evidence submitted by National Union of Students (SV50) NUS believes that the proposed government target of reducing net migration—especially by the artificial means of setting a cap is fundamentally misguided. While it is clear why in times of economic hardship the British public becomes less sympathetic to immigration, we believe that the UK can only benefit from an injection of highly-skilled talent from abroad, to plug existing skills gaps, to enhance the global competitiveness of UK industry and business and to ensure the continued success of the UK’s world-leading education system. NUS believes that international students make a highly valuable contribution to the health of the UK, and that the UK Border Agency (UKBA) proposals would impact negatively on the UK’s ability to recruit, retain, and gain the benefits of, international students. Rather than seeking artificially to restrict numbers, it would be better directly to target the minority of “bogus” colleges and students who are non-compliant under the current system.

The Value of International Students The Prime Minister’s Initiative for International Education recognised that the UK’s success in the global economy depends on creating and sustaining strategic education partnerships around the world. International students who study in UK institutions contribute to that objective by facilitating knowledge exchange between cultures and building positive relationships within the UK that enables UK business to engage and compete globally. The UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA) estimates that international students contribute £2.5 billion to the UK economy in university fees alone.23 When fees in further education and the private education sector, along with the economic contribution of international students to local economies in the purchase of goods and services are taken into account this figure is much higher. The British Council reports that the most recent estimate of the economic contribution of international students to the UK is £12.5 billion per year.24 International student recruitment is a key source of income for universities. International students pay fees typically between £8–15,000 per year (depending on institution and subject of study) and this fee income alone represents between 2 and 14% of total income for 80% of the UK’s universities.25 International student fees also make a valuable contribution to college income—£42 million annually.26 Income from international students enables universities and colleges to provide facilities that benefit all students, both UK-domiciled and international. In light of recent cuts to public funding, this income stream becomes even more important to sustain the quality of UK education. UK postgraduate education, in particular, is sustained by non-EU international students, who make up 41% of all students enrolled on full-time taught Masters courses in the UK,27 and 30% of all research students in the UK.28 Postgraduate courses and research are essential to ensure a flow of individuals with higher-level skills in the UK and to maintain the UK’s world-leading research base. NUS believes that the benefits that international students bring to the UK are cultural and social as well as economic. The presence of international students on UK campuses promotes intercultural awareness among UK and international student alike and enriches the student experience. For example, two-thirds of non-EU international students in higher education responding to an NUS-HSBC survey on the student experience reporting belonging to a university club or society-significantly higher than UK-or EU-domiciled respondents.29 23 International students in the UK: facts, figures—and fiction (UKCISA, September 2010) 24 www.britishcouncil.org/new/New-homepage/about-us-old/press-office1/press-releases/British-Council-awards-celebrate- international-students-shining-achievements/ 25 Patterns of higher education institutions in the UK (UUK, 2010) 26 “Colleges’ international contribution” (157 Group, 2010) 27 Taught postgraduate students: market trends and opportunities (UUK, 2009) 28 Promoting the UK doctorate: challenges and opportunities (UUK, 2009) 29 Students Experience Report: Internationalisation and Religion (NUS/ HSBC, February 2010) Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 79

Only 1% of all migrants granted settlement in 2009 progressed directly from the study route.30 The Tier 4 Points Based System (PBS) came into effect in 2009. Subsequently new restrictions on Tier 4 immigration came into force in 2010, including, for example, restrictions on hours of work permitted during the week for students studying a course below degree level. It is too early to say what effect these changes will have on net student immigration, but the administrative burden on education providers, and the confusing effect on prospective international students of negotiating constant changes to the system could be considerable. As such, measures to restrict the attractiveness to international students of study in the UK are to be avoided. NUS believes that UKBA’s proposed changes to the system would impact negatively on perceptions of how welcoming the UK education system is for international students and thus reduce the UK’s international economic and educational competitiveness.

Impact of Proposals on Recruitment and Retention of Students The UK education system has its own internal logic, and it makes sense for a student with the capacity and means to study to be able to progress through it with the minimum of complexity. Familiarity with the system helps to ensure effective integration and academic success. It is especially in the UK’s interest to enable talented international students to progress from undergraduate to Masters and PhD level study. Proposals to restrict sub-degree-level course offering to Highly Trusted Sponsors would negatively impact on university recruitment and the academic success of international students. A minimum of one third of international student places in HE are recruited from UK sub-degree providers.31 Colleges provide opportunities to enhance English in advance of taking up a place in higher education. They also provide specialist courses and opportunities in their own right, and they should not be penalised for the abuse of the system by a minority of “bogus” colleges. A review of the accreditation system to ensure that colleges that genuinely offer high-quality courses below degree level are able to go on doing so would be a better policy. Proposals to require international students to show evidence of progression to a higher-level course are based on a misunderstanding of student progression through education. Students may wish to change course, to take a lower-level course in order to prepare for higher-level study and in certain cases, to take two degrees at the same level consecutively for professional reasons. For example, it is not uncommon to take two one-year Masters programmes consecutively in different subjects and certain scholarship schemes—such as the prestigious Rhodes Scholarship—operate well because this is an option. Proposals to raise the English requirement to B2 level would have a serious impact on recruitment to the UK education system; currently 80% of international Tier 4 entrants to the UK are at a lower than B2 level of English.32 The experience of UK study, including the provision of pre-sessional English courses while living in the UK enables rapid improvement of colloquial and academic English. Proposals to enforce a return to the country of origin in order to apply for a different course make no sense. The student may have applied and been accepted for a different course while studying on their current one, or the time between publication of results and start of the next course may be too short for the student to be able to return home and wait for their visa application to be processed. Students required to do this will apply to other countries for their higher-level course. In particular, this proposal would impact less well-off students or those from developing countries whose relatives and friends may have contributed to their being able to study in the UK. The cost of returning home to reapply would be a significant financial burden, especially if the timings meant that flights could not be booked well in advance.

Tier 1 Post-study Work Route and Courses that Include Work Placements International students feel very strongly that the availability of the post-study work route had a significant impact on their decision to undertake study in the UK. International employers value the experience of UK employment alongside a UK degree and UK employers rely on the provision to enable them to recruit the best applicants if they do not have a sponsor license. Certain types of courses, including Architecture, require a period in employment before the second part of the course is undertaken, and the post-study work route facilitates this. In particular, recruitment in the public and third sectors, in small companies, and in postdoctoral research and teaching would be affected. International students have communicated to NUS their deep sense of betrayal that the post-study work route could be withdrawn when they had chosen to come to the UK specifically because this option was available to them. One Indian student, accepted to an MBA programme in London, wrote to us, “Currently many students have taken admission, paid fees and have got UK student visas…and have been assured two years PSW by the universities under these circumstances”. This student indicated that experience of work in the UK labour market would be a significant factor in her ability to find work on return to her home country, as well as the MBA qualification itself. Students who feel this way will not give a good impression of the UK on their return to their country of origin. Another international student observed, “Revoking PSW altogether will have a massive negative impact in the sense that it’ll sent out the message to prospective international students that 30 The migrant journey (Home Office, 2010) 31 UKCISA sector meeting, 17.12.10 32 UKCISA sector meeting 10.01.11 Ev 80 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence

they are not welcome to this country any more”. The Aldwych Group has noted that students posting on international student forums are already advising their friends to avoid study in the UK.33

Restricting the proportion of work placement to academic study could also have unforeseen effects on legitimate students whose educational institutions have legitimately determined that the best form of learning for that qualification includes a significant period of time on work placement, followed by assessment. Among the strengths of the UK education system is its offering a diverse range of types and modes of qualification. Institutions already have internal quality assurance procedures to ensure students receive the mode of education that is most effective for their intended qualification.

UK-educated international students can provide UK employers with a pool from which to recruit who already have good English, as well as ﬂuency in one or more other languages, who understand UK systems, and who may have had signiﬁcant work experience both within and outside the UK. This is surely a good thing and widens the pool of skilled applicants from whom employers can recruit.

Working During Study and Dependants

Proposals to restrict further the working requirements of international students take no account of local casual employment markets and could result in an international student being unable to maintain him or herself especially in areas with high living costs such as London. Institutions with high numbers of international students would be unable to provide weekday work for all who wanted or needed it. The ﬁnancial viability of study in the UK could be impacted.

Proposals to limit the right of dependants to come to the UK and/or to work would have a devastating impact on the ability of the UK to recruit mature/postgraduate students, especially those registered on long courses such as PhDs. It could also impact disproportionately on women students, who would potentially be more likely to need to bring a child or a partner to the UK in order to be able to study here at all. January 2011

Written evidence submitted by MigrationWatch (SV3a)

In the course of your committee hearing on 8 February, I promised to send you a note about various estimates of the scale of abuse of the Student Route.

You asked (Q249) how many of the 200,000 students arriving in recent years we believed, as a rough percentage, to be bogus. I replied 20–25%, including overstayers.

In paragraph 8 of our written evidence we gave an estimate of 32,000 students in higher education in the year to March 2010 who had overstayed or intended to do so. This was taken from our paper “The Cost of Bogus Students” which, in turn, was based on a Home Ofﬁce paper entitled “Overseas Students in the Immigration System”.

The Home Ofﬁce paper used two different methodologies. For Higher Education and English language colleges they selected a sample from institutions that had been subject to a roll call investigation; this gave an average of 14% of students who were potentially non-compliant. However, the 2% non–compliance for universities was based on institutions that were applying for Highly Trusted Sponsor status so they could, as the paper recognised, be expected to be more compliant than average. Given that universities accounted for 51% of the students involved, the extent of non-compliance (3,000 of the 32,000) could well be a signiﬁcant underestimate.

There are two other ways in which the 32,000 could be an underestimate. First, it assumes that all those recorded as continuing their studies will return home afterwards but some will later decide to stay on after expiry of their visas.

Secondly, the looser controls on Tier 4 which we explained to the Committee could well lead a higher proportion of bogus students than in the past.

It should also be noted that 50,000 student visitor visas were issued to visa nationals in 2010. This could be a further source of overstayers.

The total could thus be of the order of 40,000–50,000 or roughly 20%, as I mentioned.

Dr Huppert (Q256) referred to a figure of 2,895. This is the Home Office figure for potential non–compliance at universities which we rounded to 3,000 and which was included in the 32,000 for hither education, including universities. I have dealt with his other question (Q255) above. 33 Visa Change Report (Aldwych Group, 2010) Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev 81

I hope that this letter gives you some useful further background and also explains why I was reluctant to get into this kind of detail in the course of an oral hearing. February 2011

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