London Mayor Boris Johnson on Monday said that Britain is beginning to lose out to Canada, Australia and other countries due to tough new visa restrictions on foreign students.
“The policy on visas is sending the wrong signal. There are so many stipulations that we’re starting to lose business to Australia, America and Canada,” Johnson said on a visit to New Delhi.
Johnson, whose trip is aimed at boosting education and cultural ties between Britain and India, said he believed that the curbs could be having a damaging impact on Britain’s reputation and economy.
He said he had written to British Home Secretary Theresa May to express his worries over the new rules under which students face limits on their ability to work and tougher English-language standards, among other conditions.
“As mayor I will do all I can to promote London as a place that is open for business and open to the brightest talent in the world,” Johnson said.
International students “bring bright ideas that cement the reputations of our leading universities,” he told students at the private Amity University on the outskirts of the Indian capital New Delhi.
Foreign students also have “huge power that boosts the UK economy”, he added.
Johnson has been a strong opponent of the government curbs that are aimed at weeding out “bogus students”.
He said the British government should not lose sight of the fact that the fee income from foreign students “helps to subsidise the rest of the university system”.
London mayor says Britain losing out on foreign students
