Britannia Radio

A selection of recent media reports

Schools eye extension plan to tackle growing problem
AN urgent review into ways of accommodating soaring rolls in the Capital's primary schools is to look at adding e
Scotsman.com (01-Sep-2012)

Court quashes exploited chef's \u20AC92,000 award
A PAKISTANI chef who was forced to work seven days a week for pocket money, with just Christmas day off, yesterday had a \u20AC92,000 award against his employer thrown out by the courts.
Independent.ie (01-Sep-2012)

London Met University may take visa row to High Court
High Court judges could have the final say in a bitter dispute between immigration officials and a London univer
The Independent (01-Sep-2012)

Metropolicing
When I went up to St Andrews in 1960, two of my earliest pals were foreign students: a Nigerian sprinter who became a medic and an Indian physicist who went
Scotsman.com (01-Sep-2012)

Major clampdown launched on 'beds in sheds'
Action to tackle suburban shanty towns Ministers today launched a major clampdown on rogue landlords to bring an
Communities and Local Government (31-Aug-2012)

Net immigration slips by 26,000 as more people leave the UK
NET MIGRATION into the UK fell dramatically between 2010 and 2011, as more people left the country and fewer
City A.M. (31-Aug-2012)

Press Releases

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Net Migration Figure for 2011
30 August, 2012

Commenting on today's net migration figure for 2011, Sir Andrew Green said :

“These figures are a disappointment. Net migration remains far too high. Today’s numbers underline the huge difficulty of getting immigration back under control after thirteen years of chaos. The government is on the right track and numbers will come down in future years. Meanwhile, the government must ensure that they pursue the national interest ahead of vested interests. They now need a blitz on bogus students and much tougher action on enforcement and removal. For too many years we have had only a token effort at tackling illegal immigration.”

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Are Foreign Students Worth £12 Billion a Year? 
30 August, 2012

The NUS are now claiming a figure of £12.5 billion as the benefit of foreign students. The universities lobby has previously bandied about the figure of £8 billion. The implication is that this valuable sector of our economy is somehow being put at risk as a result of tightening the immigration regulations for foreign students.

That figure was based on 2008/9 but a study by Migration Watch UK released todayshows that the true level of benefit to the UK’s foreign exchange earnings in that year was more like £4.3 billion. This is just over 1% of the total – and only a small part of this would be at risk from tightening up the immigration system. Adjusting for inflation and the increase in the number of students gives a figure of £5.76 billion for 2010/11.

The study found that the BIS report which produced the original figure of £8 billion is very misleading in this context because:

- It is an assessment of the value of the entire sector – not just of foreign students.
- It included EU students who, of course, are not subject to immigration policy
- and it ignored the fact that many international students work part time to cover their living costs.

The Migration Watch UK report also looked at claims that the sector will be “worth” £17 billion in 2025. This, however, depends on a still further massive increase in student numbers that will, because of the proportion that stay on, seriously undermine the government’s immigration policy.

Commenting, Sir Andrew Green, Chairman of Migration Watch UK, said “Some inflated figures have been circulated about the economic value of foreign students. The number of student immigrants has increased by 59% since the new Points Based System was introduced and there is crystal clear evidence of substantial abuse. The government are absolutely right to crack down on this. Looking ahead, the financial interests of the universities cannot be allowed to destroy the government’s immigration objectives which are so widely supported by the public”.

Notes to Editors: Data from the International Passenger Survey shows that in 2008 126,000 students were recorded as coming to the UK for a year or more for the purposes of study. In the year ending September 2011 this has risen to 201,000.