Ministers ordered a shake-up of the non-EU student visa system in a bid to crack down on illegal migrants on Monday, saying it was prone to abuse, and opened the biggest removal centre in Europe to speed up deportations.
The government said the twin-pronged approach was part of a policy aimed at tackling illegal working, sham marriages, bogus colleges, failed asylum seekers and organised immigration crime. Immigration minister Damian Green said a "thorough evaluation" of the student visa system would be taken over the months to tighten the rules - part of a broader policy to control levels of immigration.
In a related announcement, Green said he had opened two new wings at Harmondsworth Immigration Removal Centre close to Heathrow Airport, making it the biggest in Europe. The wings were completely rebuilt after being burned down by detainees in 2006. The government said the revamped centre will allow the UK Border Agency to hold and eject the country's most difficult detainees, the majority of whom were former prisoners and hardened criminals. "I believe foreign criminals should be sent home at the earliest opportunity, and today we have taken another step in that direction," Green said.
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