Stephen Bush on the extraordinary draft legislation which Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp, Matt Vickers, Katie Lam and backbench colleagues have proposed in parliament

It is a proposal that would seek to deport around 5% of the resident population, including over a quarter of a million with ILR

Thank you for saying this. Parliament needs to present a united front against such a clear threat to our democracy and its explicit incitement to racist violence.

Such transparently anti-democratic, anti-British, intolerant, divisive and dangerous forces must be recognised, resisted and condemned.

This is absolutely true but those millions want to see the significant and growing threat to the country posed by anti-democratic, intolerant and racist movements (+ their cynical leaders) explicitly recognised, resisted and condemned. Need Government + Parliament as a united front against this now.

Thank you for saying this. Hopefully many other MPs will speak up too. Parliament needs to present a united front against such a clear threat to our democracy and explicit incitement to racist violence. The vast majority of the country is with you.

Thank you for the moral clarity + challenge, Jonathan. At the bare minimum the vast majority of people in UK who reject a politics of violence + hatred can no longer close our eyes and hope the global rising tide of racist grievance + disintermediated lies will not wash up on our shores. It’s here.

Personal note: went to (some) of the countermarch yesterday, and then watched TV coverage of both.

@sundersays.bsky.social is right that the far-right/racists on the main march are a (small) minority whose numbers are not growing.

It's the apparent paralysis of the majority that scares me. [1/n]

The OfS free speech guidance fails to grasp the diversity + complexity of modern HE provision – comfortable reminiscing on the cut+thrust of debate in an Oxbridge college set; nothing to say on e.g. a professional workplace where students are also staff.

Read our response:
ihe.ac.uk/latest/news/...

Sooner or later, one of three things is going to happen. Universities can find money at home, or they can find it abroad. But if they don’t find it, some are going under.

In defence of international students.

NEW on Wonkhe: For IHE chief executive Alex Proudfoot, it is time to strengthen all academic partnerships, not just some buff.ly/1kkcj7b

Read my statement in response to this proposal from DfE:

ihe.ac.uk/latest/news/...

Good evening! Coming up in @feweek.bsky.social edition 480:

🚕Council SEND transport cuts trigger safety fears
🛑OfS pause puts in-demand courses in growth sectors on ice
🏎️How to ‘fast-track’ house-building apprenticeships

PLUS...

One training provider has spent a year developing a hospitality degree apprenticeship with 350 places committed by employers

That now can’t go ahead because of this

Front page coverage in FE Week today of the damaging decision to suspend OfS applications this week quoting me and some tertiary providers directly affected. Also in same issue an expert analysis by @smitajamdar.bsky.social on the shaky legal basis of the move.

I go into more detail here on why the OfS decision is so disappointing + a mistake. Students will suffer. Just not the students OfS is looking for.

The main point I hope people take away is that the HE sector is so much larger + more complex than acknowledged. Paradigm shift in regulation needed.

NEW on Wonkhe: Independent HE has faced issues with registration and degree awarding powers processes for years. For Alex Proudfoot, the OfS decision to pause this statutory activity is the latest in a long line of mistakes https://buff.ly/49iTa0K

Thanks for reporting IHE’s response to this incredibly disappointing news today.

Clearly I haven’t quite fully engaged work mode on this here platform yet…

But as I see quite a few of your are talking about today’s OfS news, here is IHE’s statement on the matter:

ihe.ac.uk/latest/news/...

I guess I must be in an education sector starter pack - hello new Bluesky friends! I am on holiday for the next two weeks but when I’m back I promise to start delivering some top quality education policy content and even more terrible jokes. You lucky things..

Hello Blue-skydivers. How are you finding it? It may take me a while to actually use this much, as it is only available on a phone app, and I am predominantly an iPad and Mac tweeter. My phone screen is far too small for either comfortable typing or satisfyingly procrastinatory doom scrolling!