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Boris Johnson is to abolish any immigration restrictions on top scientists to counter fears that the UK’s research reputation could be seriously damaged by a no-deal Brexit, Trend reports citing Guardian.
The prime minister will instruct the Home Office and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy to work on a new plan to ease entry to the UK for scientists ranging from those based at prestigious institutions to promising students who have won maths Olympiads.
Downing Street sources suggested Johnson believed the UK should have sent signals immediately after the referendum that it would ease visa restrictions on skilled migrants to counter claims that the leave vote was anti-immigration, a policy rejected by Theresa May.
Though the proposed new criteria remain relatively vague, Johnson said he wanted the immigration system to be changed to make the UK a far more attractive place for scientists to be based.
“We were home to the world’s first national DNA database, we discovered graphene, and our cutting-edge scientists should be proud to follow in the footsteps of titans like Ada Lovelace and Nobel laureates Francis Crick and Peter Higgs,” he said.