21 April 2017 Matt Sisson, Projects and Membership Manager
As we mentioned last week, there is continuing uncertainty about the state of the unfinished HE Bill, as the General Election in June means that the already squeezed timescales for legislation are shaken up by pre-election politicking. While we don’t know yet what this means for the TEF, the Office for Students, or any of the other features of the Bill, there is increased certainty on EU student funding, as the government announced that EU students will still be eligible for financial support for the 18/19 academic year. Universities and Science Minister Jo Johnson said of the announcement:
“We have been clear about our commitment to the UK’s world-class higher education sector. Through our modern industrial strategy and the additional £4.7 billion committed for research and innovation over the next 5 years, we are ensuring the UK has the skills and environment it needs to continue leading the way in academia and research. A key part of our success is attracting talent from across the globe. This will provide reassurance to the brightest minds from across Europe to continue applying to study in the UK, safe in the knowledge financial assistance is available if needed.”