Well, my Lords, this subject certainly engenders good and powerful debates. If arguments are repeated, perhaps noble Lords feel that they are worth repeating. I have to repeat my arguments. I am afraid that the Government cannot accept the amendment, but perhaps I can help noble Lords by telling them why that is, and why we feel that, despite our policy of welcoming the brightest and the best with no limit on numbers, students are an important part of any strategy which deals with immigration.
I start with that strategy. The noble Baroness, Lady Warwick of Undercliffe, challenged me on the whole business of net migration. Reaching the tens of thousands remains the Government’s objective. We chose a net migration target because we want to control immigration due to its effects on social cohesion, infrastructure and public services. These arguments are frequently discussed in other areas, but they form the background to why this legislation has come forward. Jobs and wages are affected by migration but, when it comes to students, there is no cap on numbers—I repeat, no cap on numbers—of genuine students who want to come here. They are welcome. Those who have the right qualifications, sufficient funds to cover their fees and maintenance costs and a good level of English can study here, and there is no limit on numbers. Our
reforms, to tackle the widespread abuse that was occurring in the system we inherited, have favoured our world-class universities.
Those reforms are working. The number of issued student visas has dropped by around 27% from the high in 2009, while visa applications from university students were up 7% in the year ending December 2013 and applications from students going to Russell group universities were up by 11%. Higher education statistics show that numbers of international students in our universities held steady in 2012-13, with a small decline of 1%—but numbers of UK and EU students have fallen by more than that. It is true that there has been a decline in the number of Indian students at our universities, but this followed a period of soaring numbers and, by contrast, there has been strong growth in numbers of students from China, Malaysia and Hong Kong in 2012-13.
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A British Council survey published in 2012-13, of more than 10,000 young people across India, showed that the UK was their most favoured destination, chosen by 21% of respondents. Young Indians put British universities first for postgraduate courses. As my noble friend Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth said, we are not losing out to our competitors. The UK is the second destination of choice for university study, with only the USA attracting more international students. Numbers of Indian students going to universities in our competitor countries have also fallen.
The noble Lord, Lord Stevenson, spoke of visa costs; we will be discussing those when we discuss the fees orders. We do not think that the cost of a student visa deters students from coming here. It is around average when compared to our competitors and represents a small proportion of the overall cost of studying here. The addition of the NHS surcharge will not, in our view, alter that balance. I will address specifically, giving graphic examples, some of the costs that can be incurred by students when they are here when we debate amendments that are specifically about those surcharges.
In considering the amendment, I invite noble Lords to reflect upon its practical effect. The noble and learned Lord, Lord Hope of Craighead, sought to know why students seeking accommodation, bank accounts, driving licences and access to the NHS were included in the Bill. They are already required, either under the current law or current practice, to prove their identity. There is no extension, and the noble Lord, Lord Stevenson, acknowledged this in his speech. Additionally, when applying for a driving licence or seeking hospital treatment, they already must demonstrate their immigration status in the UK. Genuine students do this now by presenting their biometric residence permit or their passport and visa documentation. That is all that is needed for an immigration check, but it is important and that is why they are included. Of course, they are not the target, but the people who do not possess that identification are. I hope that the noble and learned Lord can therefore understand why it is important that we use this weapon in addressing illegal immigration.
I know that a number of noble Lords will want to talk about landlord checks. Schedule 3 already provides
an exemption for specific types of student accommodation. As I have previously indicated, we have listened carefully to concerns raised by the higher education sector about the adequacy of this exemption, and we will return to this later in the debate. I do not wish to spoil the denouement, but the next group of amendments deals specifically with landlord checks and it would be more appropriate to deal with those there.
I cannot repeat sufficiently that the Government take every opportunity to communicate the message that students will find a warm welcome in the UK, even if it takes a debate of this type. I can say it again: there is a warm welcome for students in this country. I hope that noble Lords will take that message on board and that Universities UK will be reinforced in its argument in promoting higher education in this country.
I mentioned the Indian situation: young Indians put British universities first for taught postgraduate courses. The UK was also top with the United States as a quality destination for research doctorates and undergraduate degrees. We are a premier centre for higher education in the world. As I said at Second Reading, we have an excellent offer for university students. There is no limit on the number of students who can come. University students can work here, and postgraduates can bring dependants. We have ensured that there are good opportunities for graduates to stay in skilled work or to set up or develop a business.
The indications are that that approach has been successful, and we continue to attract students to study at our world-class universities. Visa applications were up by 7%, and more than three-quarters of all student visa applications are for studies at a higher education institution. The most recent higher education statistics show that the number of international students studying at Russell group universities rose by 5% in 2012-13 and that the number of those enrolling rose by 4% in the same year. A comparison of the most recent UK higher education statistics with those of other countries shows that the UK continues to attract a good share of the international student market. For the year to September 2013, the UK issued 1,873 more visas to Indian students and 33,011 more to Chinese students than Australia.
The UK is the second most popular destination, as I said before, and student numbers in Australia and France have dropped at a similar rate to the UK. Although Canada has experienced strong growth, it attracts only a quarter of the number of international students who come to the UK. There was strong growth in students coming to our universities from China, up by 6%, Malaysia, up by 3%, and Hong Kong, up by 15%, which shows that the UK still succeeds in attracting high-quality students.
Calls to exclude students from the net migration figures miss a basic point: there is no cap on the numbers. Changing the way we measure migration would not make any difference to our student migration policy. The United Nations definition of net migration includes all migrants who change their place of residence for 12 months or more. That acknowledges that all migrants, students included, have an impact on communities, services and infrastructure for the time they are here.
All our competitors—Australia, Canada and the USA—include students in their net migration figures. I should also say that this is not a perfect world. The noble and learned Lord, Lord Hope of Craighead, talked about the justification for students and asked why we need to have any controls on them at all. It is not the case that all students leave. In the year to September 2013, while 124,000 non-EU students came to Britain planning to study for over a year, only 49,000 left the country. I hope that noble Lords will just think on those figures and then perhaps put themselves into the position of the Home Office, which seeks to make sure that we have legal migration into this country.