The government¡¯s proposed levy on international student fees is a ¡°stupid idea¡± opposed by a ¡°big group of Labour MPs¡±, according to an influential backbencher.

In a further sign that politicians in seats reliant on universities are increasingly prepared to speak out against the idea, Alex Sobel, chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Students, told the party¡¯s annual conference in Liverpool he hoped it would never come to fruition.

Outlined in a White Paper earlier this year, the plan would see universities pay a tax of 6 per cent on international tuition fees ¨C which would be spent on higher education and skills across the country.

Sobel, MP for Leeds Central and Headingley ¨C home to the largest proportion of students in the country ¨C called it a ¡°stupid idea¡±.

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¡°There¡¯s a big group of Labour university MPs who probably wouldn¡¯t frame it like that but are opposed to it. I hope the government will come away from this idea,¡± he told an Higher Education Policy Institute (Hepi) fringe event in Liverpool.

Sobel said students had fallen into a wider debate around illegal migration and should not be counted in migration figures.

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¡°Students don¡¯t arrive on a small boat, they¡¯re not part of this narrative. I call international students¡­educational tourists. They come, they get their education and then they go, it¡¯s a long, long holiday.¡±

Sobel¡¯s criticism echoed that of vice-chancellors who have been furiously lobbying against the levy, arguing it would be a big economic blow to regions dependent on the money spent by students.

If the levy was passed on to overseas students, Chris Day, vice-chancellor of Newcastle University and chair of the Russell Group, said it would cause tens of thousands fewer of them coming to UK universities and be a ¡°huge financial hit¡±.

Day said it was more likely that universities would pay the fee themselves because ¡°if we could charge them 6 per cent more, we would¡±.

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¡°We use that money to subsidise research, to subsidise home teaching. It¡¯s just utterly bonkers to take 6 per cent off our international fees and suggest it might somehow be spread for the benefit of the country.¡±

Frances Corner, vice-chancellor of Goldsmiths, University of London, said the levy was a ¡°complete disaster¡± and will not spread the money around the sector.

¡°There¡¯s a whole series of questions that need to be answered and the economic impact would be really devastating to so many institutions.¡±

And Sasha Roseneil, vice-chancellor of the University of Sussex, called it a ¡°completely disastrous plan¡±.

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¡°It won¡¯t deliver any positive benefits for the country, all it will do is lead to more redundancies, less money to invest in research¡­and it will lead to fewer international students coming which is perhaps what¡¯s wanted.

¡°But it will not prop up universities. It will make a very difficult situation much worse so it¡¯s a completely misconceived, terrible idea.¡±

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patrick.jack@timeshighereducation.com