Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Chris Stephens and Robert Halfon

Monday 11th March 2024 Commons Chamber

[Chris Stephens (Glasgow South West) (SNP)]

6. What recent discussions she has had with her counterparts in the devolved Administrations on the potential merits of providing additional financial support to students in the context of increases in the cost of living.

[The Minister for Skills, Apprenticeships and Higher Education (Robert Halfon)]

The hon. Gentleman will know that higher education is a devolved matter and that each Administration are responsible for determining the student finance arrangements that apply to students eligible for funding.

[Chris Stephens]

New data reveals that in most areas of England, state school pupils who have received free school meals have less than a one in four chance of entering higher education. One reason for that is that poorer students decide not to pursue that path because of the prospect of being saddled with huge debt, which takes decades to clear. Do the Government believe that they should follow the Scottish Government’s example and abolish tuition fees, so that education can be made accessible to all?

[Robert Halfon]

This Government believe that we need to be fair not only to students but to taxpayers. It is worth noting that, in England, those from disadvantaged backgrounds are 74% more likely to go to university than they were in 2010. We have put together a substantial package to help students with the cost of living, including a £286 million welfare support fund, which we give to the Office for Students to ensure that students with difficulties are helped.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Chris Stephens and Robert Halfon

Monday 29th January 2024 Commons Chamber

[Chris Stephens (Glasgow South West) (SNP)]

19. What assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of changes to visa fees and conditions on the number of applications for postgraduate research.

[The Minister for Skills, Apprenticeships and Higher Education (Robert Halfon)]

Our visa changes strike the right balance, ensuring we have a fair and robust migration policy but maintaining the UK’s place as a top destination for the best and brightest from around the world. The hon. and learned Lady will be pleased to know that we continue to attract the best scientists from across the world: we have over 46,000 postgraduate research students from overseas, 41% of the total, producing groundbreaking and collaborative research.

[Robert Halfon]

I know that the hon. and learned Lady is a stickler for data. Our target was for over 600,000 international students every year, and we are well over that target. As I say, our visa changes strike the right balance, being fair to the taxpayer while ensuring that we have good international students coming to our country.

[Chris Stephens]

The minimum salary requirement for a skilled worker visa is set to increase by 48%, from £26,200 to £38,700, jeopardising the prospects of early-career researchers and academics coming to the UK. Can the Minister answer the question from my hon. and learned Friend the Member for Edinburgh South West (Joanna Cherry) that he did not answer: how will the UK be a science superpower behind that visa paywall?

[Robert Halfon]

I think I have set that out. We have 36% of university researchers coming from outside the UK, and over 46,000 postgraduate students from overseas—41% of the total. What I would say to the hon. Gentleman is that the real cost of the SNP’s tuition fee policy is that Scottish universities are unable to provide places for local students, who are 13% less likely to take a place at a university in Scotland than English students are to take a place in England.