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Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Scheme

asked Her Majesty’s Government why they propose to end the Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Scheme relating to the whole Commonwealth. The noble Lord said: I thank the noble Lord, Lord Bach, for replying to this debate and noble Lords who are contributing to it. Looking round the Room, I can see noble Lords of great distinction. I was going to describe them as heavyweights, metaphorically, but a very powerful team in any event. I am sure that the Minister will see the importance that we attach to this subject. I declare an interest as a former Foreign and Commonwealth Office Minister of State and a former vice-chancellor of the University of Buckingham. The purpose of the debate is to test the commitment of Her Majesty's Government to the Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Scheme, particularly in the light of the Foreign and Commonwealth Secretary’s Statement in another place on 13 March when he announced that Foreign and Commonwealth Office support for the Commonwealth scholarships of the eight developed countries of the Commonwealth will be terminated and that Chevening scholarships would be very substantially reduced. As many will know, the Commonwealth scholarships are financed mainly by the Department for International Development which is financing about £17 million a year for developing countries and, until very recently, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office was financing £2 million for the eight developed countries of the Commonwealth. The scheme was launched in 1959, so next year is its 50th anniversary. There have been no less than 26,000 awards by Commonwealth countries since 1959, of which Britain has provided 17,000. It is worth noting that 1,000 United Kingdom students have benefited from the scheme in other Commonwealth countries. It has now been supplemented by a 12-week fellowship programme for professional people in the public sector, and there is also a distance learning element. The distinctive features of this scheme are that, first, it gives long-term links for the United Kingdom with leaders in all walks of life in the Commonwealth. Secondly, it is important in helping to weld the Commonwealth together. Thirdly, it has a high reputation for excellence, with a rigorous selection procedure. The two key points are academic merit, which is very important for any scholarship scheme, and identifying, where possible, leadership potential. On balance, the schemes have been 60 per cent for taught Masters and 40 per cent for doctorates, although I know the desire is to increase the number of doctorates. If we look at the list of the alumni, there is a remarkable record of leadership right across the board, including top judges, vice-chancellors and deputy prime ministers. In Canada, for example, the governor of the Bank of Canada and the present Clerk of the Privy Council and Secretary to the Cabinet are alumni. The list goes on and on and is a very impressive indication of the calibre of the scheme. A survey published yesterday shows that 70 per cent of all those who are awarded these scholarships maintain vigorous links with their country of origin. There is therefore a very important link between the country, the host and the recipient country. Last night I had the pleasure of meeting a number of serving scholars gathered in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. They are very impressive people of great calibre from Africa, Asia and all over the Commonwealth. How has this gone wrong, if I may put it that way? If we go back a year, the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting took place in Uganda. The Prime Minister took a formidable team of Ministers with him and placed great importance on the Commonwealth during that meeting. On 18 December, the noble Lord, Lord Malloch-Brown, the Minister in charge of the Commonwealth for Her Majesty's Government, wrote me a letter. He said: "““The Commonwealth today is as important to the UK as ever. It has a unique role to play and is well placed to take action and move the debate forward on issues of global importance, such as climate change, development, education and trade””." The Minister continued: "““You mention the Foreign and Commonwealth Office contribution to the Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Plan. I am pleased to tell you that we have decided to maintain our commitment for 2008/09 at the same amount as this year (£2.05 million)””." Subsequently, we were told—and I am glad—that a little extra money would go to the developing countries scheme through the Department for International Development. Then the bombshell came on 13 March in the Foreign and Commonwealth Secretary’s Statement. When one looks at that Statement, not by any stretch of the imagination can one regard it as his finest moment. He announced a switching of £10 million from the Commonwealth scholarship scheme to support new priority programmes on climate change—first, by ending the Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s scheme for developed countries altogether and, secondly, by reducing substantially the Chevening scholarship scheme while saying that it could pick up some of the developed countries of the Commonwealth’s scholarships. The Foreign Secretary said that there had been a reduced focus on quality in the Commonwealth scheme and that we needed to create relationships with potential international leaders. However, it was subsequently revealed that there had been no proper review of the scholarship scheme, no proper analysis and no co-ordination or consultation with other departments— or, indeed, with the outside world, the universities and other Commonwealth countries. In other words, the situation rapidly seemed to become an unholy muddle. It gave a damaging signal on the eve of the 50th anniversary of the scheme, and before the launch next year of the Commonwealth scholarship endowment scheme, that Her Majesty's Government were not fully committed to the scheme or to the value of the Commonwealth, of which this scheme is a litmus test. In the following months, it became evident that not only was the Chevening scheme being cut substantially, but the Marshall scheme was being cut in real terms. Indeed, in August, the Higher Education Funding Council for England, but not for Wales or Scotland, announced plans to end the overseas research student award scheme and to pull out, by 2011, £15 million a year of support for a large number of overseas students. By then, a serious message had been given that Her Majesty's Government no longer attached importance to international scholarships. There have been widespread protests in Parliament in recent months. From Canada, the Speaker of the Senate, Mr Kinsella, wrote to a number of noble Lords pointing out that Canada was to lose the 1,500 scholarships that it had under the scheme. On 14 July, former Secretary-Generals and former Prime Ministers of the Commonwealth wrote a robust letter condemning the ending of this aspect of the scheme. At the end of September, the Foreign Secretary owed the Secretary of State for Innovation Universities and Skills, Mr Denham, a drink because he realised how much damage had been done by the Foreign Secretary’s decision and announced that he had agreed to contribute £400,000 per annum for two years to partially restore the Commonwealth scholarships for developed countries, provided that the funding was matched by university participation and partnership. To indicate the importance that they attach to these scholarships, 70 universities have agreed to take part. So the scheme has been partially restored and will offer about half the number of scholarships that we had hitherto. I end by asking the Minister four key questions. First, on behalf of Her Majesty's Government, will he reaffirm their commitment to the importance of the Commonwealth? Secondly, to give substance to that commitment, will the Minister give assurances that the comprehensive scholarship scheme of the Commonwealth will continue for the foreseeable future; will the Government take the opportunity of the 50th anniversary of the scheme to give it renewed vigour; and will they pledge to donate in 2009 to the new Commonwealth-wide endowment scheme? Thirdly, will he reiterate Her Majesty's Government’s recent commitment to the importance of British universities competing internationally as centres of excellence? To help to do that, will the Government agree on the need to fuel the expansion of postgraduate research, in which 40 per cent of all students are international? This requires a coherent and consistent financial commitment by the Government to international scholarships, working in partnership with universities and the private sector. It is an ideal opportunity for the Government to demonstrate that they will revive faith and commitment in the scholarship schemes. Finally, to give coherence to all of this, will the Minister confirm that Her Majesty's Government are now pulling the strands together across departments and with universities? I understand that a working party has been established. It would be helpful if the Minister could say what its terms of reference are and whether that is its purpose. I look forward to hearing what he says.