Stephen Timms – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2015-10-16.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps he plans to take to increase the number of gifted overseas students studying in the UK.

Joseph Johnson

The UK welcomes the brightest and best international students and there is no cap on the number that can study here. The Government promotes study in the UK through the Britain is GREAT marketing campaign which has an education pillar and through the Education UK brand and website, which is managed by the British Council. Together these measures promote UK education in over 100 countries, connecting millions of people with the United Kingdom.

The Government also has major education agreements with overseas partners. Key programmes include the UK-China Partners in Education Programme, the UK-India Education Research Initiative and engagement in Brazil’s ‘Science without Borders’ scholarship scheme.

The Government also supports student exchange, such as through the Erasmus Scheme, which enables international students to take short placements in the UK and British students to gain valuable overseas experience.