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Japa: UK universities lament poor finances since visa restrictions
Restrictions on visas for international students are causing financial hardship for the United Kingdom, UK, universities. They said this on Thursday, calling for a hike in domestic tuition fees to offset yawning deficits.
The president of Universities UK, UUK, which represents 141 British higher education institutions, said all its universities were “feeling the crunch” since the curbs came in last year.
“There is now a clear choice. We can allow our distinguished, globally competitive higher education system to slide into decline or we can act together,” said Sally Mapstone.
The total income of the British higher education sector in 2022-23 was just over £50 billion ($66 billion), most of it from tuition fees and grants, according to a House of Commons research paper.
Typically, international students pay more in tuition fees than their domestic counterparts and have become a lucrative source of income for many institutions.
But the previous government under Conservative ex-prime minister Rishi Sunak slapped restrictions on overseas student visas. They were also banned from bringing their families, as part of a crackdown on record levels of immigration.
In the first four months of 2024, there were 30,000 fewer applications from overseas than in the same period in 2023, according to official statistics.
Universities have been warning for months about the effect on their finances, with fears shortfalls could see them slash courses and force some to the wall.
Mapstone told a UUK conference in Reading, west of London, that the current deficit in the sector was £1.7 billion for teaching and £5 billion for research.
She urged “investment and support” from the government to maintain world-class teaching and research.
Tuition fees paid by domestic students rose from £9,000 to £9,250 a year in 2017 but have been frozen since then, despite inflation.
The head of King’s College London, Shitij Kapur, said fees should now be between £12,000 and £13,000.
In a video broadcast at the UUK conference, the new Labour government’s Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson acknowledged that universities were facing “complex problems”.
“I can’t promise painless or immediate resolutions. But I do promise that these issues will get the attention and the commitment they deserve,” she said.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said on Wednesday that their naval forces stopped two ships attempting to cross the Strait of Hormuz and directed them to the territorial waters of the Islamic Republic.
“The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps naval force this morning identified and stopped in the Strait of Hormuz two violating ships,” the Guards said in a statement.
“The two offending ships… were seized by the IRGC’s naval forces and directed to the Iranian coast.”
They identified one ship as “MSC-FRANCESCA”, which they said belonged “to the Zionist regime” in reference to Israel, and the other as “EPAMINONDAS”, which they said was “tampering with navigation systems and jeopardising maritime security.”
The Guards further warned against any action against the regulations imposed by the Islamic republic in the strait “as well as activities contrary to the safe passage” through the waterway.
Tehran has said vessels must seek permission to leave of enter the Gulf through Hormuz, through a route that in peacetime accounts for a fifth of the world’s oil and gas exports along with other vital commodities.
Source: AFP
Islamic cleric Sheikh Ahmad Gumi has advised the Nigerian government to rethink its stance on refusing to negotiate with terrorists, saying dialogue may be key to ending the country’s long-running violence.
In a Facebook post on Wednesday, the Kaduna-based cleric argued that Nigeria is being influenced by a “Western slogan” that does not always reflect reality.
He stressed that talks, rather than force alone, could help break the cycle of attacks affecting many parts of the country.
Gumi also warned that weak border control is worsening insecurity, allowing weapons and criminal elements to move freely.
According to him, this has made it more difficult to defeat terrorism and protect citizens.
He pointed to ongoing tensions involving the United States and Iran, saying even powerful nations engage in negotiations despite public positions against it. He urged Nigeria to draw lessons from such situations.
He said: “We should not be misled by the Western slogan, ‘We don’t negotiate with terrorists.’”
Gumi added that violence often leads to more suffering for civilians, as both terrorist attacks and military operations tend to harm innocent people.
He further explained: “As long as Nigeria’s borders remain porous, the cycle of violence will persist.”
The cleric emphasised that understanding the root causes of terrorism is crucial to finding lasting solutions, warning that force alone cannot resolve the crisis.
In his words: “The lesson is clear: lasting solutions require realism, dialogue, and strategic understanding, not just force.”
Gumi suggested that Nigeria may need a neutral mediator to help open dialogue and reduce tensions, similar to efforts seen in other conflict zones.
Governor of Kano State, Abba Yusuf, has nominated and forwarded Murtala Garo to the State House of Assembly for screening and confirmation as the new deputy governor of the State.
This is contained in a statement by the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Mustapha Muhammad, late Tuesday night.
According to the statement: “The nomination is in line with Section 191(3) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), which empowers the Governor to nominate a Deputy Governor where a vacancy exists.”
Recall that the position of the deputy governor became vacant after the resignation of Abdussalam Gwarzo on March 27, 2026.
“Following wide consultations with key stakeholders, the Governor has requested the Assembly to grant the necessary approval for Garo’s nomination,” the statement added.
Iran Seizes Two Ships attempting to cross Strait of Hormuz
Gumi wants Nigerian government to consider dialogue in tackling terrorism
Kano Gov nominates Garo as deputy
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