Top UK scientist says research visa restrictions endanger economy
Prof Sir Paul Nurse, one of Britain’s most distinguished scientists, says the government is “shooting itself in the foot” with its visa system for science researchers.
Sir Paul told BBC News that high visa fees deter early-career researchers, instead being welcomed by the UK’s economic rivals.
Supporters of the current system say high visa costs help fund the NHS and reflect wider public concerns about immigration.
But the Nobel Prize-winning scientist says Britain’s scientific future is at risk.
“Expensive visa costs are shooting yourself in the foot. It does absolutely nothing to attract such people,” Sir Paul said.
Sir Paul, who takes over as president of the Royal Society, which represents the UK’s leading scientists, warns that countries such as China and Singapore are actively seeking overseas scientific talent.
“Why are we putting obstacles in the way of the people who will actually drive our economy? It makes no sense.”
The Nobel laureate describes Britain’s science base as “fragile” due to a combination of high visa costs, funding pressures and negative signals, as well as existing immigration rules.
He is calling on ministers to rethink a system that forces scientists to pay an annual NHS surcharge and prove they have thousands of pounds in the bank before arriving.
Official guidance on the Immigration Health Surcharge explains that visa applicants pay the surcharge to help finance their healthcare.
Home Office guidance states that applicants must demonstrate a certain level of savings to show they can support themselves “without recourse to public funds”.
The Center for Policy Studies, a centre-right policy think tank, argues in its report: Taking Back Control to reduce net migration to “tens of thousands”.
However, policy expert Karl Williams generally agrees with Sir Paul’s sentiments, but argues that a tight general immigration limit should be maintained after the recent historic surge in immigration.
“The wave of migration we are experiencing between 2021 and 2024 is probably the most significant demographic event in modern British history… If you say yes to one sector, you start saying yes to other sectors and you will essentially recreate the problems of recent years.”
According to the visa statistics of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the total number of people who received visas for work in the field of natural and social sciences in the last quarter was 323.
“Even if you double that, it wouldn’t make a huge difference to overall migration numbers,” Mr Williams told BBC News.
“But there’s no solid system to make this work, for example having conversations about where numbers could be reduced to get more scientists involved.”
