Rishi Sunak’s Cabinet reshuffle could have a significant impact on the UK’s positioning towards international student recruitment, with James Cleverly becoming home secretary and former prime minister David Cameron replacing him as foreign secretary.
Many in the higher education sector will likely welcome the sacking of Suella Braverman as home secretary following a row over an article accusing the Metropolitan Police of bias in the policing of protests, since she was seen as a driving force behind the government’s unease around the growing number of foreigners entering the UK on student visas.
Earlier this year, the government changed the rules to ban overseas students from bringing family members with them to the UK unless they are on postgraduate research courses, while there were suggestions that Ms Braverman would have liked to have gone further and placed more restrictions on – or cut the duration of – post-study work visas, which currently allow graduates to stay in the UK to look for work for two years after finishing their courses.
This summer, the government also introduced significant increases in the costs of study and work visas and the annual health surcharge, leading to warnings that this could force early career researchers out of the UK.
