Parties draw line on foreign students
A clear political line in the sand is emerging between the two major parties over immigration, as the Government moves to strengthen its commitment to international students.
A new strategy to improve foreign students’ experience while studying in New Zealand seeks to attract more to our shores by ensuring they are made to feel ‘‘welcome’’ and ‘‘valued for their contribution to New Zealand’’.
Included in the plan is a focus on helping international students ‘‘understand the pathways to employment and residency that are available to them’’.
It’s in stark contrast to a Labour policy released on Monday, targeting that group by narrowing their scope to work while studying, and reducing the numbers that could stay in New Zealand after they graduated.
It was part of a wider package Labour sought to introduce in a bid to curb immigration by up to 30,000 and raise the calibre of long-term migrants allowed entry into New Zealand.
Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment Minister Paul Goldsmith said the Opposition policy was ‘‘reckless’’ and placed a vital part of New Zealand’s export economy at risk.
He unveiled the strategy designed to help ‘‘protect and enhance’’ New Zealand’s reputation as a ‘‘safe and welcoming study destination’’.
It also called for the sector to make sure students had accurate information about the costs of living and studying here, that they understood their rights to work and their rights as employees, and that their voices were heard at a Government level when relevant policies were being developed.
Stripping an international student of their ability to remain and work in New Zealand post-study would have a damaging effect on New Zealand’s valuable export education sector, said Goldsmith.
‘‘The whole thing wouldn’t close down tomorrow, but it would have an impact.’’
Goldsmith said the open post-study work visa – allowing graduates to stay and look for work for 12 months following study – was an important part of the package.
International education is the country’s fourth largest export industry and provides jobs for more than 30,000 New Zealanders.
It was ‘‘vital’’ students had a high quality experience while studying in New Zealand. That meant they needed to be able to support themselves and have a clear idea of what the rules were.
‘‘It may well be that they’ve studied in New Zealand, they’ve got good language skills and they’ve got skills that are useful – they may be a potential source of skilled migrants.
‘‘But the majority of them don’t, the majority of them go back,’’ he said. ’’To just come in and in a blanket way, put at risk a very substantial section of the broader export industry, frankly I think is reckless.’’
Part of Labour’s policy sought to make it more difficult for international students to gain a ‘‘backdoor entry’’ into full residency by limiting the post-study work visas to students who had studied the minimum of a bachelor’s degree.
The party expected the measure to reduce net migration by between 9000 to 12,000.
Immigration spokesman Iain Lees Galloway said a recent survey showed that was the intention of most foreign students who came to New Zealand.
According to the 2016 International Student Barometer, of the 72 per cent of international students who had a plan for after their course of study, 41 per cent planned to stay in New Zealand – up from 35 per cent in 2014.
In comparison, 22 per cent of international students in other countries planned to stay in those countries after study.
‘‘Our international education sector should be about delivering quality education and exporting that to the world. Instead, part of the sector has become little more than a vehicle for people to gain a backdoor to live in New Zealand.’’
He said it made them vulnerable to exploitation.
Goldsmith said there had been steady growth in the uptake of bachelors degrees and higher.
‘‘That is an appropriate focus, but the way to do it we believe, is to work with the sector positively, which is what we’re doing.’’
A broader international education strategy was being formed and a draft consultation document was expected to be released in the coming weeks.