Report has it that around 2,600 foreign students could be
deported from Britain after their university was stripped of its ability to
sponsor visas for pupils beyond the European Union, the government announced
Thursday. The move provoked dismay from students and accusations that the move
by the Conservative-led government, which is bent on reducing immigration,
could damage Britain’s global reputation.
Immigration Minister Damian Green said., London Metropolitan University has lost its “highly trusted
status” because a survey found significant problems with the qualifications of
many of its foreign students.
It was revealed that so many things were wrong with the
school, problems like:
-There was no proper documentation that the
students had a good standard of English
-There was no proof that half of those sampled were
attending lectures. Green said
-More than a quarter did not have current permission to be
in the country.
Speaking to BBC radio, Green said, “Any one of those breaches would be serious”. He went on to say that all three of those breaches are found at London Metropolitan.”
A degree from a U.K. university is highly prized by many
students abroad, and those from outside the European Union often pay higher
fees than residents. The British government, which has cracked down on
immigration in multiple ways, has pointed to student visas as a category ripe
for abuse by those who may instead be looking for work.
London Metropolitan
has 30,000 students, and 2,600 are affected by the government’s decision, said
university spokesman Nick Hansen. Students from other European Union countries
don’t need visas.
The affected students
will have 60 days to find new sponsors once they are formally notified by the
government, or they could be deported. A task force has been set up to help
genuine students who otherwise qualify for visas, Universities Minister David
Willetts said, but with the fall term imminent students have little time to
find new sponsors and courses.
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