Theresa May’s plan to send home international students after they graduate has been quashed by chancellor George Osborne, amid warnings that the move would damage British universities and business.
Ms May, home secretary, wanted the Conservatives to include the measure in their election manifesto, arguing that tougher controls were needed on non-EU students who she says are a key driver of net migration.
Her proposal that anybody entering Britain on a student visa should be required to leave the country when they graduate, and have to apply for a new visa if they wanted to work in the country, was attacked by university and business chiefs, including Sir James Dyson.