Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Stephen Kerr and Brandon Lewis

Monday 20th November 2017 Commons Chamber

[Brandon Lewis]

An awful lot of migrants who come here do not come as asylum seekers, and that is quite a wide issue. With regard to students, the net migration figures are assessed and published by the Office for National Statistics, which is entirely independent of Government, and those figures are based on the UN definition of a migrant, which is somebody who is in the country for 12 months or more.

[Stephen Kerr (Stirling) (Con)]

15. Stirling University has a deserved global reputation for welcoming international students. When will Scotland’s universities have the advantages of post-study work visas?

[Brandon Lewis]

As I said a few moments ago, students who leave university with a graduate-type job would be able to apply under the tier 2 visa system anyway. We are running a pilot at the moment, and I will be looking at the outcome very soon.