Crackdown on UK student visas a threat to Scottish Universities-MPs

United Kingdom, 26th July: Recent plans by the UK to introduce tougher UK student visa rules are going to affect Scottish universities in a big way.

This has been revealed by a Westminster committee.

It is being alleged that the new stricter UK visa norms for overseas students will affect Scotland in a big way.

High-calibre, genuine overseas students will be restricted by new UK visa rules—New UK immigration policies aimed towards foreign students will prove to be a bottleneck in the way of high-talented foreign students wishing to study in Scottish universities, the committee at Westminster alleges.

This will deal a big blow to the reputation of the UK as a favored destination for studying abroad and will curb economy’s growth. The committee further adds that such UK immigration rules are, in fact, not suitable for Scotland.

The findings of the Westminster committee report assert that the results of these rules will affect Scottish education.

Hence, there is a need for adopting an appropriate approach to UK immigration rules.

Higher education-a source of great revenue for Scotland--Giving details about the issue, Ian Davidson, Labor MP for Glasgow South-West and chairman of the Westminster committee, said Scotland gets around £500m from the higher education sector. This means university education is of great significance for the Scottish economy, he added.

And since, Scottish universities are already passing through a tough financial phase, hence, such UK immigration changes could spell big trouble for them, Davidson cautioned. No doubt, the UK government needs to curb UK immigration, said Davidson, but the only thing for the government to bear in mind is that it must remain focused while taking any decision in this regard, he added.

The issue of impact of new UK visa changes announced by the UK government on Scottish universities must be addressed by the government at the earliest, he maintained while referring to the report released by Westminster committee.

The report findings were released after consultations with higher education colleges and 21 Scottish universities represented by Universities Scotland apart from several individual representatives from other universities with regard to UK immigration proposals.