May abandons migration target

Home secretary admits that it will be missed, writes Alison Goddard.

Theresa May has said that it is "unlikely" that the government will meet its target of reducing net migration to the tens of thousands by the end of this Parliament. Ms May made the admission on BBC1’s Andrew Marr Show. She has since been interviewed by the Daily Telegraph, which says that she appeared to confirm that the government has now abandoned its pledge. The Financial Times covers the statement made by the home secretary. The inclusion of international students in the net migration target has been blamed for a slump in the numbers coming to the UK from India. The extent to which British universities depend on foreign students is shown by an article in the Daily Telegraph, which identifies those institutions with the highest proportions of overseas students. It also says that the University of Edinburgh is seeking to raise the proportion of students coming from outside the UK to 50 per cent.

George Osborne will announce state-backed loans for masters degrees, according to a report in the Daily Telegraph. It says that the chancellor of the exchequer will make the announcement in the autumn statement on 3 December. Whether the funds would be provided as maintenance loans or as tuition fee loans remains to be seen.