Universities hail change to records on students in UK

SCOTLAND’S universities have welcomed a decision by the UK government to change the way it records the number of students entering the country.

Universities minister David Willetts stopped short of removing students from immigration figures altogether, but said he would publish “disaggregated” totals.

Addressing university leaders meeting in Keele, he said: “We will disaggregate the headline totals for net migration so that people can see the student element within that. We are not removing students from the ­totals.”

Universities Scotland, which represents principals, had been calling for a removal of international students from the net migration targets.