Professor Eric Thomas, president of Universities UK (UUK), said that the UK has failed to fulfil its duty towards overseas students, who are affected by the decision to strip off London Metropolitan University’s sponsor licence to admit foreign students.

The outrage came from Professor Thomas, who is also the vice-chancellor of Bristol University, after Universities Minister David Willets declared a £2 million fund to aid London Metropolitan University’s international students, who now face migration to another university.

Addressing the UUK conference at Keele University on Thursday morning, Professor Thomas, said, “Around 3,000 students, of whom the overwhelming majority were bona fide students, found themselves in a foreign country far from home without a course. I have had no rational explanation of how that fulfilled our duties to them as human beings never mind as students.”

The Professor lashed out saying, “Everyone involved in this needs to remind themselves that families have paid for these courses and that, for these students, this is one of their major lifetime chances. Let’s all ponder on how we would have reacted if that had happened to our sons and daughters in a foreign country. Why were their needs not given absolute primacy in all these considerations?” I would argue that we all have been found wanting in our duties to these students.”

London Metropolitan University’s Highly Trusted Status was scrapped in July when the UK Border Agency (UKBA) examined that more than quarter of its students did not have permit to stay in the country.

London Metropolitan University declared that it would take legal action against decision so that its students can return to study under emergency situation.

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London Metropolitan University banned from admitting foreign students