Trump is pushing students towards Britain – ministers, don’t let your immigration obsession stand in the way | Polly Toynbee

Beleaguered UK universities have a golden opportunity. If the government passes it up, it risks billions in revenue Shocking stories told at a US universities conference in San Diego described Donald Trump’s assaults on research grants, academics and students. Foreign students face deportation for infractions as minor as parking or speeding tickets. A reported 500 student visas have been suddenly revoked – with some students sent to deportation centres, and others told to “self-deport”. With a million foreign students warned by their universities not to travel abroad for fear of never getting back in, that’s a strong deterrent to others deciding whether to study in the US.Jo Johnson, former minster for universities, King’s College London visiting professor and chair of the Lords education committee, listening to this list of persecutions, spoke to me from San Diego. “The UK should be extending the warmest of welcomes, a safe port in a storm,” he says. Concerns about immigration numbers shouldn’t enter the calculation about attracting foreign students. “We need these highly motivated, highly educated people.” He reels off the great benefits they bring: “They are our second largest export after finance, bringing over £40bn to our economy. Our workforce needs them, with an ageing population and a falling birthrate.” If Britain turns such students away, there will be global competition for them.Polly Toynbee is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...

Comments

Opinions

PETER VAN ONSELEN: The countdown is on and punters are pointing to an election result that the Greens definitely WON'T like

about 14 hours ago

President Trump’s polling slump: Letters to the Editor — April 29, 2025

about 18 hours ago

Crass, cruel and incompetent. Sir Jim Ratcliffe's latest cash-grab shows how little loyalty matters to United now, writes OLIVER HOLT

about 18 hours ago

Without American energy dominance, there is no American dream

Selling the Royal Mail to a shadowy foreign billionaire is an act of economic vandalism that savages our nation's heritage and breaches the public interest, says ALEX BRUMMER

about 20 hours ago

Trump is restoring merit — by slaying rules that enforce reverse discrimination

Comments

Similar News

If Starmer is willing to help Trump host a lucrative golf tournament, will he caddy for him too? | Marina Hyde

Chaos is Trump’s calling card. But reality is biting back | Lloyd Green

No, thank you. I don’t want to appear on one of Trump’s ‘lists.’

Is Trump breaking up his winning coalition?

We’ve had a ‘constitutional dictatorship’ before. Trump is different.

Which Is More Dangerous, Trump Triumphant or Trump in Trouble?

Tariffs, immigration, and Trump’s First 100 Days: 14 Former Democratic Voters Discuss

There Are Limits to What the Courts Can Do in the Face of Trump’s Legal Onslaught

The Most Important Executive Orders, Events and Moments in Trump's First 100 Days

Trump’s chaotic threats won Mark Carney the Canadian election – but only just | Colin Horgan

President Trump’s polling slump: Letters to the Editor — April 29, 2025

EDEN CONFIDENTIAL: Meghan's 'desperate to trump the royals', claims former friend

I Can’t Believe Anyone Thinks Trump Actually Cares About Antisemitism

Trump’s first-100-days wins, red alert for ActBlue and other commentary

Remedy for Trump’s sinking poll numbers: Pass the tax-slashing budget bill fast

New York’s outrageous Medicaid spending needs a reset by Trump and the GOP Congress

Trump is restoring merit — by slaying rules that enforce reverse discrimination

Letters to the Editor: Trump's FCC chairman is placing scrutiny on the wrong news outlets

Trump's $5,000 baby bounty: Can money solve America's fertility crisis?

Corporate America must rethink everything in the post-Trump era

Opinions

Adults are back on border patrol

The future for America and the Catholic Church

Gregor Gall: Is Scotland yet a 'Fair Work Nation'?

Here's a loophole big enough to vape through

Letters: The BBC in England understands the value of soaps. Why can't BBC Scotland?

Despairing wives reveal the red flags that proved their marriages were doomed YEARS before divorce

Herald Diary: Here's a surprising thing about Amy Macdonald ... or is it?

Neil Mackay: We badly need a legal route to indyref2 … here’s how we do it

Kevin McKenna: The right to free speech doesn’t include embarrassing Scotland

Letters: Why can't the SNP see the message behind the rise of Reform?

Camley's Cartoon on the Russian ceasefire

PETER VAN ONSELEN: The countdown is on and punters are pointing to an election result that the Greens definitely WON'T like

President Trump’s polling slump: Letters to the Editor — April 29, 2025

Crass, cruel and incompetent. Sir Jim Ratcliffe's latest cash-grab shows how little loyalty matters to United now, writes OLIVER HOLT

Without American energy dominance, there is no American dream

Powering the future: Why AI can't succeed without reliable American energy

A plan for American energy dominance

We can't afford the high cost of energy instability

Undoing the Inflation Reduction Act hamstrings our own energy goals

Nuclear will help the United States reclaim energy dominance

Meeting the demands of today and tomorrow requires clean and efficient energy

Permitting needs an Operation Warp Speed

America's AI moonshot will fail without affordable, reliable energy

Utility-scale energy storage is the foundation for energy dominance

Energy dominance demands an "all of the above" approach

Aviation fuel made in America, for America

A strong nation requires reliable electricity

The path to energy dominance and a clean energy future

America's battery industry: Building our energy future on proven domestic expertise

Energy incentives will unlock energy dominance

Unleashing the Permian Basin's power for U.S. energy renewal

American independence starts with smarter energy and chemical policy

At White House Correspondents’ Dinner, fake remorse over Biden ‘mistakes’

EDEN CONFIDENTIAL: Meghan's 'desperate to trump the royals', claims former friend

Selling the Royal Mail to a shadowy foreign billionaire is an act of economic vandalism that savages our nation's heritage and breaches the public interest, says ALEX BRUMMER

Trump is restoring merit — by slaying rules that enforce reverse discrimination

New York’s outrageous Medicaid spending needs a reset by Trump and the GOP Congress

Trump’s first-100-days wins, red alert for ActBlue and other commentary

Bill O’Reilly’s new book takes on the worst of the worst

Remedy for Trump’s sinking poll numbers: Pass the tax-slashing budget bill fast

Remembering Vanessa and tracking down Havana syndrome

The great betrayal: How the CCP humiliates China and blames the world

LOVERRO: Subtract a Dan Snyder, add a Jayden Daniels, the answer may equal a new stadium

Activist judges become the judged

India-U.S. deal signals energy sovereignty

Don't shut out veterans as we close the door on DEI

Trump's $5,000 baby bounty: Can money solve America's fertility crisis?

Deregulation can cure the tariff hangover

Corporate America must rethink everything in the post-Trump era

Whats next for Middle East studies?

Keep communist China out of our medicine cabinets

Judges are not above the law —even if they’re trying to protect illegal-immigrant thugs

Donald Trump has slaughtered woke & trans sacred cows, shut down illegal migration & rocked the EU – what’s next?

The BBC hasn’t changed despite all the promises – how many more sex pests, bullies or worse still work there?

No amount of spin can hide the fact that the BBC DOES still have a major problem with the abuse of wealth and power

DARREN LEWIS: 'The show of love between father and son during Saturday's fight was an antidote to toxic masculinity'

Women’s footie ONLY exists because of men like Ian Wright – Eni Aluko’s criticism is big blunder but I wouldn’t sack her