British universities press for change via #WeAreInternational campaign

In an effort to build public support as they seek to push for change in the UK government’s policy, universities in Britain have revived a campaign celebrating the impact of international students on the country.

The #weareintenational campaign launched by Sheffield University in 2013, following a clampdown on rules governing international students, was relaunched at an event in Parliament on Tuesday, with a focus on the economic benefits that students brought to individual universities and local economies and to highlight the role they should have in furthering Britain’s industrial strategy going forward.

Campaigners are optimistic, particularly in the wake of the general election which reduced the government’s majority, that change could be brought, in particularly around the inclusion of international students in immigrant numbers.

Keeping them in the numbers has added to the pressure on politicians to bring in more and more restrictive immigration measures, as well as to the growing sense that international students were not welcome, particularly in the context of other countries across the world making great efforts to woo them.

“We have to make a final push…its very important we keep making the argument — rational, important arguments about the economy,” said Sir Keith Burnett, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Sheffield, who accompanied Prime Minister Theresa May on her visit to India last year. “Its turning out to be a global issue — you are either an open powerful society capable of doing things or you close your ability to be what you want to be.”

“Its very important we keep saying that, in the context of Brexit and the focus on exports to say what they have done for us,” he told this paper at the event.

“It’s actually a major part of the economy of Sheffield and if you looked at the impact of a reduction its really serous and not just for the local economy.” He estimates that the 14,000 or so international students in Sheffield contribute around £20 million (net) to the city’s economy, creating around 10,000 jobs.

Neil Carberry, director of people and skills at the industry body the CBI, said that universities should be viewed as a crucial part of Britain’s industrial strategy (the body has recently set up a team devoted to the sector), “The more international we are the more we can attract people from across the world to come here, to stay, or to go back, to build links…the better it is for us the better it is for them.”

“We have won the argument we have yet to win the policy change,” said Sheffield Central MP Paul Blomfield MP, who expressed his disappointment about how an initiative to remove students from international migration figures passed through the House of Lords earlier did not make it through the House of Commons as legislation was rushed through ahead of the general election.

Yinbo Yu, International Student Officer at the National Union of Students, said the campaign also presented an opportunity to raise some of the other issues faced by international students — including the impact of visa restrictions on their ability to stay and work in the UK after their degree, a rise in hate crime across the country in the wake of last year’s referendum and forthcoming legislation updating Britain’s immigration regime expected later this year.

“We’re hoping that it will not include any tougher measures for international students but whatever comes out of this Bill we are going to stand with our students because we have the democratic mandate of our students.”