Cabinet finalises plans to reform student immigration amid warnings ministers risk 'crippling' an industry worth �40bn a year
The outcome of a Whitehall struggle over how far the coalition's curb on overseas student numbers should go is to be announced on Tuesday.
The cabinet is expected to approve the final details of its reform to student immigration from outside Europe amid warnings from MPs that ministers risk "crippling" a thriving industry that is worth �40bn a year.
Home Office ministers have made clear that the number coming into Britain via the student route has risen to such an extent that it is now far larger than that of migrants who come to work or join family members. Last year students accounted for two-thirds of the visas issued to migrants, according to ministers.
The home secretary, Theresa May, is committed to reducing overall annual migration to Britain, which stood at 210,000 last year, to below 100,000 by the next general election and the curbs on overseas student numbers are regarded as essential to achieve that goal.
But the universities minister, David Willetts, gave a clear hint a fortnight ago that there were "grey areas" and "fuzzy boundaries" in the policy over which he had yet to reach agreement with the Home Office.
Willetts particularly identified the ability of overseas students to bring dependants with them and the post-study work route as areas where the original Home Office proposals were under discussion within government.
"It is a feature, but there may be ways in which we can tighten it up or make sure it is not abused or becoming a route to settlement," he said of the post-study work route.
Willets told MPs: "There are a whole range of options between complete closure of the route and the status quo. There are certainly universities that tell us very clearly that if they were completely to lose the post-study work option that would put them at a disadvantage."
There has also been intense discussions over how far the clampdown should hit "pathfinder" courses which allow overseas students to improve their English or take A-level qualifications and then subsequently go on to British university degrees.
The home secretary has promised that the curb on student numbers should not affect genuine students coming to study degrees at British universities.
The Home Office insists that tackling the abuse of the student route will help improve the UK's reputation overseas as a place of quality education and stricter controls will also protect legitimate students from being ripped off.
New examples of abuse of the student route cited by the Home Office last night included:
? At Mumbai in India, between September and December 2010, the UK Border Agency (UKBA) had concerns about 200 applications from dependants to join students attending privately funded colleges. When the agency followed these up, in almost 20% of the cases the student was no longer at the college.
? In a study of 454 south Asian students studying accountancy courses about which the UKBA had suspicions, 65% failed to demonstrate the required level of English, and over a fifth could not speak English at all.
? UKBA found that a college whose licence has been revoked charged six students from the Philippines a total of �25,000 for a year's study in health and social care that never took place. The students paid extra on top of this to spend the entirety of their time on their work placements
Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2011/mar/22/final-details-curbs-overseas-students-announced
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