The
British government today rejected an appeal by nearly 70 top university heads
to review changes to the student visa regime that is likely to put off students
from India and other non-EU countries from coming to the UK. In a letter to
Prime Minister David Cameron, the university heads
noted the economic and other contributions made by international students, and
said Britain stood to lose out on the highly competitive international student
market unless the recent changes were reviewed.
The university heads said:
"In particular we request that international university students be
removed from the net migration statistics for policy purposes, bringing us into
line with our major competitors".
They added: "We believe that
this would help government by creating a clear differentiation between
temporary and permanent migration, help universities whose international
character is essential to their future success, and help the UK by contributing
to economic growth".
Students comprise a major component
of overall annual immigration figures.
The recent curbs on student visas
are intended to reduce the number of international students as well as prevent
abuse, but critics of the curbs say students should not be counted as
immigrants since their stay is temporary.
Immigration minister Damian Green,
who last week said there had been a 62 per cent fall in student visas issued in
the first quarter of 2012, rejected the contention in the letter to Cameron,
and said: "Public confidence in statistics will not be enhanced by
revising the way the net migration numbers are presented by removing
students."
"Students coming to the UK
for over a year are not visitors — numbers affect communities, public services
and infrastructure.
"The independent Office for
National Statistics is responsible for producing net migration statistics
according to the internationally agreed definition of a migrant which is
someone entering the country for more than a year," he added.
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