Last week, a new proposed immigration bill was introduced that unfairly targets international students. Mike Anstey (YUSU International Student’s Officer) notes that the bill plans to charge £200 to non-EEA international students for use of the NHS and fine landlords who does not ensure their tenants have the appropriate visa. Mike notes this “will effectively make unregulated and untrained private landlords a new branch of the UK border police” and the bill in general “gives a message that international students are not welcome in the UK”.
I wish to cover the fundamental issues underlying the immigration debate. Firstly, it seems some portions of British society perceive international students in a negative light and think that they are here to steal jobs once they graduate or make use of the welfare system. Secondly, on an even deeper philosophical level, it seems that some portions of British society have lost faith in the benefits of globalization.
International students bring a massive boost to the UK’s education sector and to the economy in an age of austerity. An international undergraduate spends around £51,000 on fees alone for the entire course; injecting a huge amount of extra cash for universities to spend on research. International students also tend to spend more since they are usually the affluent members of their home countries – just look at the number of internationals queuing outside Betty’s daily! Over their three academic years, it is likely that these students will inject upwards of £100,000 into the UK and local economy.
The bashing of immigrants and the targeting of internationals is a false narrative, used by politicians for personal gain. As The Economist notes, this issue is used by the Conservatives to appear to be tough and decisive, while it enables the Liberal Democrats to portray themselves as the more moderate party. It’s simply a way for the political parties to market themselves as distinctive in the media.
International students contribute greatly to the scientific research sector. In the age of globalization, British research papers with internationals contributing to it are more likely to be cited by overseas universities and this makes UK research more relevant. To give you just one example, Ekbal Hussain, a PhD from the University of Leeds, emigrated from Bangladesh when he was young. Today, he is working on earthquake prediction technology and researching on how to anticipate an earthquake in Turkey, which threatens 30 million lives. Immigrants like him contribute greatly to British science, and boosts Britain’s standing globally.
It seems as though Britain, once the vanguard champion of globalization, has lost faith in the concept. Britain has always benefited from globalization for hundreds of years, and should continue to do so. With developing countries such as China and India growing rapidly, Britain can continue to play an outsized role and ride the crest of globalization by being a world-class international research center. Closing its doors to foreigners completely would be ill advised.
International students that come to the UK are exposed to the concept of liberal democracy. They see how women and LGBTQ members of society are given equal rights and can contribute to the community in positive ways. This gives way to the opportunity to spread such ideas in their home countries – some of which have legislation that is oppressive of women and homophobic- and spread them. As Francis Fukuyama notes, it is ideas that will ultimately shape the material world in its own image. By opening its doors to internationals, the UK is enabling the crucial dispersal of Enlightenment philosophy and human rights to the rest of the world.
So make a stand today. Write a letter to your MP to tell them how misguided this policy is. Don’t get fooled by the game they are playing. And more importantly, don’t lose faith in globalization.