British Council

Debate between Lord Lemos and Baroness Alexander of Cleveden

Tuesday 9th June 2026 Lords Chamber

[Lord Lemos (Lab)]

I thank the noble Lord for his questions. As he knows, the problems that the British Council has encountered in Russia go back a long time, and we take very seriously the recent problems that he mentioned. It is not a comfortable position for the British Council at all. I do not know the specific answer to the question about IELTS, but I am happy to come back to the noble Lord on that.

[Baroness Alexander of Cleveden (Lab)]

My Lords, I declare my interest as deputy chair of the British Council. On current plans, it is likely that this Covid-era loan will be paid down for the next 15 years plus. Can my noble friend the Minister say why the Government have not accepted the British Council’s offer of using its art collection in lieu of the loan, given that HMRC regularly accepts artwork from private estates in settlement of tax liabilities? Why can a comparable arrangement not be found for the Government’s own soft-power agency? I am aware of the complexities of the matter, so I invite my noble friend the Minister to write to me on the specific issue of the art collection paying down the loan and to place a copy in the Library for other noble Lords.

[Lord Lemos (Lab)]

I am of course happy to write to the noble Baroness, but I make it clear that I hesitate, with my noble friend Lord Livermore sitting next to me, to say anything other than that the Treasury expects the loan to be paid in cash. He has made that point before, so I dare say he may have some views on this letter too. The art collection is a matter for the British Council to decide on, not for the Government.

Visas: Highly Skilled People

Debate between Lord Lemos and Baroness Alexander of Cleveden

Wednesday 26th November 2025 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Alexander of Cleveden]

To ask His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the potential impact on economic growth of trends in the number of visas granted to highly skilled people.

[Lord in Waiting/Government Whip (Lord Lemos) (Lab)]

The Government have published assessments estimating the impact of high-skilled migrants on the UK economy when changes to the Immigration Rules have been made. Skilled workers are estimated to be net contributors to the economy, particularly those in higher-skilled occupations.

[Baroness Alexander of Cleveden (Lab)]

I thank my noble friend for his Answer. Since I tabled this Question, there have been changes to the planned settlement arrangements for the UK. It is encouraging to see that there are no changes for the global talent visa and high earners, but there are changes for their spouses. It is now clear that they will be decided separately, potentially meaning that a high-earning applicant could receive settlement within three years, yet a stay-at-home spouse might never be eligible. Such a move would obviously have a detrimental impact on talent attraction and growth. Will the Minister look again at the eligibility of spouses for settlement in the forthcoming consultation?

[Lord Lemos (Lab)]

I thank my noble friend for that question. She is asking about the partners of highly skilled people being required to earn settlement in their own right, as part of plans announced by the Home Secretary last week. As my noble friend referred to, those plans are currently subject to a public consultation. She asks for a commitment to look again. We will, of course, consider the responses to the consultation carefully and in the round before announcing the Government’s next steps, and we will be particularly concerned to avoid some of the unintended consequences that have beset immigration policy in the past.