A cross-party group of MPs and peers has joined forces with UK universities in calling for the visa scheme for Ukrainian refugees to be extended to temporary placements for students and academics.
In a letter to Priti Patel, the home secretary, the parliamentarians and Universities UK, the advocacy organisation for universities, said the scheme should provide visas and temporary places for displaced students and academics to study and carry out research.
Led by Andrew Rosindell, the Conservative MP for Romford, who is a member of the foreign affairs committee, the group also includes the leader of the Liberal Democrats, Ed Davey; David Blunkett, the Labour peer and former education secretary; and Tom Tugendhat, the Tory backbencher who chairs the foreign affairs committee.
The government has so far introduced two systems to allow Ukrainians displaced by the Russian invasion of their country to come to the UK – a scheme for family members of people already in the country, and one by which individuals or organisations can sponsor people to arrive.
The latest Home Office statistics showed that of 32,800 applications via the family scheme, 24,400 visas had been issued. With the sponsorship route, 150,000 expressed interest in sponsoring people, with 32,200 formally applying to do so, and 4,700 visas issued.
The letter argues that the amount of interest shown in the sponsorship system illustrates that many Britons are willing to help, and that the students and academics visa would help shelter more people until they are ready to return home.
As well as offering “sanctuary” to students and academics, the proposal says that allowing young Ukrainians to continue studying subjects such as medicine and engineering will help them gain qualifications that will be vital in Ukraine when the war is over.
“It is vital that President Putin’s narrative that Ukraine is not a country is firmly and unequivocally rebutted and the bravery and collective struggle of the Ukrainian people is properly documented,” Rosindell said.
“Only by giving Ukrainian academia a safe home can this be ensured. Already individual universities and institutions are offering positions to Ukrainian academics, but today we call for this to be extended to state programmes and to students as well, with the necessary financial support for universities to implement this.”
Blunkett said it would be “a tragedy if the young people who form the future for rebuilding the country and offering the powerhouse of innovation and creativity were to be denied the continuation of their education and research opportunities because of the actions of President Putin”.
He added: “Offering the opportunity to resume learning with appropriate support in the UK’s higher education system is just one small, but important, step in making our commitments to the Ukrainian people a reality”.
A government spokesperson said: “Anyone currently studying in the UK is already covered by our Ukraine extension scheme, meaning they will automatically qualify for three years’ leave to remain here.
“We are moving as quickly as possible to ensure that those fleeing Ukraine can find safety in the UK through the Ukraine family scheme and Homes for Ukraine, with almost 30,000 visas issued in the last three weeks alone and thousands more expected to come through these uncapped routes.”
