The "Hostile Environment" in British Universities: The International and Broke Campaign

Approximately 29% of academic staff in British universities are not British; 16.9% come from EU countries and 12.1% from non-EU countries. Among research-only staff (typically postdoctoral researchers), 47% are from overseas. In this USS brief, we outline key issues facing non-EU international staff members at British universities, including overt and covert surveillance, spiralling visa costs, untrained or unaware administrators, and limitations on the right to take action to defend and improve their conditions. In short, British universities are a hostile environment for non-UK staff and students. It is past time for UK universities to both push back against this environment and invest in practical support to make our universities truly international. To achieve this, British and EU colleagues need to understand how the hostile environment affects us all.