I thank my noble friend Lord Attlee and the noble Baroness, Lady Smith, for their questions. I will take them in reverse order. My noble friend makes the comparison between fees for students in this country as opposed to some leading universities in America. I can inform the Committee that, in Harvard, it costs £600 a year and could cost up to an extra £1,500 per annum if you are a student there. The difference is quite significant between what we are able to charge in this country and what a student attending Harvard might be expected to pay. He also made a good point about the increase in the number of students, which I think he referred to in our previous debate.
The noble Baroness, Lady Smith, talked about a perverse incentive. In fact, that was the very question that I asked myself. If there were a perverse incentive, it exists at the moment because healthcare is absolutely free. In setting the amount of the charge, the Government have considered several things: namely, the cost to the NHS of treating temporary non-EEA migrants and the range of health services available without charge to migrants; the valuable contributions that migrants make to the UK; and the need to ensure that the UK remains an attractive destination for global talent. Taking those factors into account, the charge has been set at £200 a year with a discounted rate of £150 a year for students. We think that this represents a proportionate contribution to the NHS, rather than a full cost recovery. The charge has been set at a rate that is designed to strike the balance between providing a better deal for the UK taxpayer and ensuring that the UK is maintained as a destination of choice for global talent. There is a balance to be struck.
The noble Baroness, Lady Smith, also asked about review upon implementation. The operation of the health charge will be reviewed six months after implementation. I think that that will provide an opportunity to look at whether the charge is set at an appropriate level. She also asked why taxpaying migrants must pay the charge. We believe that those subject—