British politics is suffering from a “weakening consensus” on the benefits that international students bring to the country, former universities minister Lord Johnson of Marylebone has warned.
The former MP for Orpington said it was ironic that vocal opposition to international study has come from the Conservatives’ right wing when its success was set in motion by the party’s former prime minister Baroness Thatcher.
The sector must combat false narratives if it wants to win the argument, Lord Johnson said as he was announced as one of the first commissioners of the International Higher Education Commission, which was convened by fellow former universities minister, Chris Skidmore.
“The reality is that there is a weakening consensus in British politics on the benefits of international study in our system,” he said at a meeting of the commission.
