Today, the Society has joined partner organisations in the UK research and innovation sector in calling for competitively costed visas for international scientists. The call comes ahead of the Immigration Bill passing to Committee Stage in the House of Commons on 9 June 2020.
The Society’s President, Professor Sir Munir Pirmohamed said:
“The government’s support for building on the UK’s world-leading science and innovation sector has been extremely welcome. As part of this ambition, it’s vital that the UK remains an attractive destination for international researchers, who have always comprised a large segment of our research and innovation sector. We must make certain they feel welcome here.
To enable this, we are joining others across our sector to call for an urgent review of the current UK visa costs. These are among the most expensive in the world and, in their current form, are expected to have a detrimental impact on the recruitment of international research and innovation staff. This must be addressed as a matter of upmost importance.”
