Foreign students will be barred from bringing their spouses and children to the UK unless they study “high-value” degrees under government plans.
Rishi Sunak and Suella Braverman, the home secretary, are increasingly concerned after a near-eightfold rise in the number of family members joining foreign students.
New immigration figures revealed that 490,763 students were given visas last year. They were accompanied by 135,788 dependants — spouses and children — up from 16,047 in 2019.
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The figures also showed that the asylum backlog hit a record high, with more than 160,000 migrants waiting for decisions on their applications.
The government is drawing up
