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Future of UK HE depends on balanced fees and regulation, experts say

With the UK’s general election fast approaching, Shadow Immigration Minister, David Hanson, has said a Labour victory would mean international students will be removed from net migration figures, adding that the toxic immigration debate has “removed the discussion of the benefits of migration”.

Speaking at the Study UK annual conference, Shadow Immigration Minister, David Hanson said he would remove students from all net migration targets should Labour be in government next May.

Hanson described net migration targets as a "blunt instrument"

Hanson also slammed the Home Office’s “inconsistent” clampdown on colleges, describing the net migration target as a “blunt instrument”, incapable of differentiating between overseas students, entrepreneurs, and people seeking asylum or leaving home.

“We should be attracting the best and the brightest to Britain, to learn, to study, to build strong business links, to link in with our future employment needs”

“We should be attracting the best and the brightest to Britain, to learn, to study, to build strong business links, to link in with our future employment needs,” he said.

“We have thousands of opportunities for international graduates to work in the UK, we don’t have a Home Office which first of all allows them to come here and secondly to make them feel welcome once they are here.”

He added that there needs to be a change in the UK’s communication strategy that better tells prospective students that “Britain is open for business for you to develop your skills and talents and grow your economy but also our economy”.

Hanson spoke alongside HE and FE leaders at Study UK‘s annual conference last week who touted that balanced regulation surrounding funding and immigration were needed to support long-term prosperity of the sector.

Commenting on the removal of students from migration targets, Emran Mian, Director of the economic think tank, Social Market Foundation agreed with Hanson, but added that it is only the first step.

“If you handle this wrongly you create more uncertainty for an applicant, they don’t know what their prospects are for moving onto post-study work, and if you’re comparing the UK with other countries where there’s more certainty around that route then you might go somewhere else,” he said.

In addition to immigration reform, stakeholders cited balanced fee regulation for both FE and HE providers as key to success for UK education exports.

Stephen Lee, Chief Executive of liberal think tank CentreForum mused that all parties have  “remained very quiet” on the topic of reviewing primary legislation, adding that debates around funding have taken away from a “deeper issue” that is balanced regulation across all sectors.

“If there is one challenge before us, it’s where markets are restricted in their ability to evolve and develop, because of a regulatory system which is now outdated,” said Lee.

“If there is one challenge before us, it’s where markets are restricted in their ability to evolve and develop, because of a regulatory system which is now outdated”

Andrew Harrop, general secretary of the UK’s oldest political think tank,  Fabian Society, said funding, and the tuition fee debate has even split the Labour party: “The Labour party’s position on public expenditure gives them a lot more wiggle room than perhaps they are letting on in public.”

“The HE sector will have more money in future, but an ongoing internal fight around tuition fees is prevalent in the Labour party,” he added.

Jonathan Simons, head of education unit, Policy Exchange observed that the UK “punches above its weight” in the HE sector, boasting many of the best universities in the world, but added that current government policy could potentially be driving money, resources, and overseas talent away.

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