Commenting on reports that Rishi Sunak has backed away from radical reform of the Graduate Visa route, Mark Hilton, Policy Delivery Director at 91¶¶Òù, said:
“The uncertainty caused by this review of the Graduate Visa, combined with wider measures aimed at restricting access to international students and workers, has undermined the attractiveness the UK’s higher education sector.
“The Government should now unreservedly back one of our world-leading export industries and urgently commit to maintaining the Graduate Visa in its current form, as recommended by the Migration Advisory Committee.
“Abolishing or narrowing the scope of Graduate Visa route would be an act of economic self-harm. It would damage our growth prospects and exacerbate recruitment challenges in an environment where half of London firms are already struggling to fill vacancies.â€