The numbers are not in dispute. Foreign nationals studying in the UK borrowed more than £4 billion in taxpayer-funded student loans in 2024–25 — up from £3.2 billion in 2021–22. Suella Braverman and Reform UK are now making it a central political issue, framing it as universities exploiting an immigration-adjacent subsidy at the British public’s expense. Too many universities are selling immigration, not education. Last year, about 250,000 foreign students took up taxpayer-funded student loans to pay for their courses in the UK, worth £4bn.