Best Schools - International students will be allowed to stay in the UK for two years after graduation to find a jo

The move reverses a decision made in 2012 by then-Home Secretary Theresa May that forced overseas students to leave four months after finishing a degree.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the change would see students "unlock their potential" and begin careers in the UK.

The change will apply to international students in the UK - there were around 450,000 last year - who start courses at undergraduate level or above from next year onwards.

They must be studying at an institution with a track record in upholding immigration checks.

Under the proposals, there is no restriction on the kinds of jobs students would have to seek and no cap on numbers.

Alistair Jarvis, chief executive of Universities UK, welcomed the decision, saying it would benefit the UK economy and reinstate the UK as a "first choice study destination".

"Evidence shows that international students bring significant positive social outcomes to the UK as well as £26bn in economic contributions, but for too long the lack of post-study work opportunities in the UK has put us at a competitive disadvantage in attracting those students," he said.

Headteachers call for GCSE English Language to be scrapped

GCSE English Language should be scrapped and replaced with a new qualification called a “Passport in English”, headteachers have said.

The Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) – which is the country’s biggest union for secondary heads – said the change is needed because a “forgotten third” of students currently fail GCSE maths and English.

In 2018 more than 187,000 students in England failed to get at least a grade 4 – equivalent to the old grade C and considered a “standard pass” – in the subjects.

This represents about 36 per cent of GCSE students in state-funded schools.

ASCL said GCSE English Language “is not fit for purpose” because it “focuses on a restrictive choice of writing tasks with an emphasis on literary analysis, rather than on competency in English”.

Instead, it is calling for a new Passport in English, which would be taken by everyone “at the point of readiness of the student”, and which could be built on over time at different levels between the ages of 15 and 19.