Universities “ignore at their peril” calls by a group of Conservative MPs to cut international student numbers in the UK and bar some institutions from recruiting them, although a Tory former minister warned that such plans would undermine the UK economy.
The New Conservatives, a group of newer backbench MPs on the right of the party, often from “Red Wall” constituencies, attracted headlines by setting out a policy agenda to slash net migration aimed at putting pressure on prime minister Rishi Sunak.
Their agenda included the complete axeing of post-study work visas and blocking the “poorest performing” universities outside the Russell Group from recruiting any overseas students.
Tom Hunt, the MP for Ipswich and author of the group’s report setting out the ideas, also told The Times that it was not the job of government “to prop up private institutions [universities], many of which haven’t been supplying [the skills] this country needs”, and that many of the group “think possibly too many people have gone to university over the last few years, and I think the future of many universities is in the skills area”.
