Immigration: International Students Debate
Full Debate: Read Full DebateLord Hunt of Kings Heath
Main Page: Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Labour - Life peer)Department Debates - View all Lord Hunt of Kings Heath's debates with the Department for International Development
(6 years, 7 months ago)
Lords ChamberThe noble Lord is absolutely right. Earlier this year, the Royal Statistical Society agreed with that approach and said that,
“we believe it is imperative for due attention to be paid to the international definitions of migration, which lead to the inclusion of students in the figures”.
My Lords, is it not a fact that the combination of Home Office measures has had a dampening impact on overseas recruitment and we are losing market share? Coming back to the issue of statistics, the Minister’s own department’s official statistics in August last year showed that 95% of international students coming from outside the EU were fully accounted for, either by leaving to go back home or by receiving an extension of their leave to be here because they are extending their studies. What is the problem with the Home Office in coming to a sensible resolution of this?