Question to the Home Office:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have any proposals to follow the Canadian example of allowing foreign students ‎the opportunity to work in the United Kingdom for a limited period before they return home.

The UK has an excellent offer for international students, which already includes a number of options for those who wish to stay to work or set up in business after their studies.

Students who get a graduate job paying an appropriate salary can stay after their studies by switching into the Tier 2 route. There is no limit on the number of these places, which are exempt from the cap on economic migrants.

Graduates who wish to undertake a period of professional training relating to their degrees before pursuing a career overseas may do so by switching into an appropriate Tier 5 scheme.

Those completing a PhD or other doctoral qualification can stay for a year under the Tier 4 Doctorate Extension Scheme, which allows completing students to work, gain experience in their chosen field, or set up as an entrepreneur, again with no limit on numbers.

Those who wish to stay to develop a business idea can do so under the Graduate Entrepreneur scheme, the first in the world of its kind. All they need is an endorsement from their Higher Education Institution that they have a genuine and credible business idea, and to have enough funds to support themselves.