Cambridge sociologist’s visa fight ‘sends shockwaves’ through universities
Academics say case of Dr Asiya Islam, turned down after 10 years in UK, gives the lie to assurances Britain is open to experts
The UK is “open to global talent”, the government declared last week, with a new visa designed to woo the best overseas researchers. But angry academics say their protests about the Home Office’s “shocking” refusal to grant residency to Dr Asiya Islam, an “unequivocally superb” Indian sociologist at Cambridge University, have fallen on deaf ears.
Senior academics warn that unless the government reins in its aggressive application of immigration rules, talented international researchers will not want to come to the UK.