Putting universities at the heart of growth

We need a knowledge-intensive economy, developing high-skilled jobs across the UK. As part of this, the UK must remain internationally competitive, attracting skills and talent from across the globe to study and work here.

We call on political parties to commit to:

• Setting a target for GDP invested in research and development (R&D) by 2030 which matches the most innovative and competitive economies around the world.
• Treating R&D as long-term capital investment through 10-year funding cycles to maximise the ability to secure private investment through increased certainty.
• Supporting stable and managed growth in international students, backed by a pledge to maintain the Graduate visa.
• Increasing public trust and transparency in the UK’s immigration system by separating temporary migration from permanent migration in migration figures.