A Labour government will recognise the “major contribution” made by international students to the UK economy and be led by evidence about its impact on immigration, shadow education secretary Bridget Phillipson said.
Her comments came after a report by the independent Migration Advisory Committee (Mac) on Tuesday failed to unearth evidence of widespread abuse of the student visa route, which allows overseas students to stay in Britain for two or three years after graduation, despite a crackdown by the Government.
“International students make a major contribution to our country in economic terms,” she said in an interview with the Standard, pointing to their higher fees feeding into a “cross subsidy” for British students.
“Alongside that, the jobs in local communities that are created and the investment that comes - that's felt in every community right across the country that has a university,” the shadow minister said.
“That is as true here in London as it is in Sunderland where I’m a Member of Parliament, where the university has transformed the landscape of the city, and international students have been a big part of that.”
Ms Phillipson stressed: “We do want to bear down on the very high levels of net migration that we see overall. And we'll be looking carefully at whatever the Government says in response to the Migration Advisory Committee.
“But they have set out some very clear recommendations which are evidence-based, and our approach on international students will be in line with the best available evidence,” she said.
“The majority of students who come here have a great experience and then return home to their country of origin. And then we build those ties that endure over the long term, our standing in the world, business links.”
Under changes introduced by Rishi Sunak’s Government in January, international students studying in the UK are no longer able to bring dependants with them, apart from on postgraduate research courses.
Last year, 114,000 graduate visas were granted and another 30,000 for dependants, the Mac report said.
Home Secretary James Cleverly has said he wants to ensure the graduate route is “not being abused” and that it is supporting Britain to attract and retain “the brightest and the best”.
But the Mac report said the post-study visa should be retained in its current form, observing that some courses at universities such as Stem subjects would be “less financially viable” to run for UK students if the number of higher-paying international students falls.
The findings come ahead of the latest net migration figures being published next week, with Rishi Sunak’s Government anxious to cure a political headache of a general election this year.
Net migration for the year ending June 2023 was 672,000, down from a record 745,000 in the year ending December 2022, according to official statistics.
Former immigration minister Robert Jenrick has put forward proposals to curb migration – including getting rid of the graduate route.
The Government said it was considering the Mac findings “very closely” and would respond in “due course”.
