Majority of British people against decrease in international students

58% of British people are against a reduction in the number of international students coming to the UK to study, according to a new poll by ComRes.

Out of the 4,000 surveyed, 46% wanted student immigration to remain at its current level whilst 12% were in favour of an increase in international students. However, after being presented with information on the economic benefits of international students, the percentage of those supporting an increase in international students rose to 24%.

This poll follows Theresa May’s refusal to remove international students from net immigration figures, which the government hopes to reduce to under 100,000 a year. However, many MPs are protesting May’s stance on international students due to the economic and benefits that they bring to the country.

It is estimated that they boost the UK’s education sector by £73 billion per year and support 750,000 jobs. There are currently 124,000 international students in the UK, almost 7,000 of which study at Warwick.

The President of Universities UK, Dame Julia Goodfellow, said that the results of the poll highlighted that the British public views international students as: “valuable, temporary visitors”.

Goodfellow also commented that: “The most recent figures on international students in the UK showed a worrying decline in the number of new international enrolments over recent years. At the same time, competitor countries such as the USA and Australia have seen increases. Both countries open their arms to international students and classify them as being non-permanent or temporary residents in their immigration systems.

“The UK could be doing much better than this. The UK has the potential to be one of the world’s fastest growing destinations for international students, building on its current status as the second most popular destination for international students [after the US].