Speaking in a House of Lords debate on the implications of the EU Referendum result on NHS staff, Lord Bilimoria warned against implementing policies which would see trained medical professionals leaving the NHS at a time when the institution is facing a staffing shortage. He reiterated the words of Health Secretary, Jeremy Hunt MP, that EU nationals are vital to the success of the NHS, and called on the government to ensure that EU nationals working in the NHS are able to stay in the UK post Brexit.
In the first debate in the House of Lords since the outcome of the EU Referendum, Lord Bilimoria lamented the spirit in which the Referendum was held. He noted the inaccuracies in the statistics used during the campaign and suggested that the Electoral Commission should be granted new powers to police against misleading campaign material. Lord Bilimoria then outlined the implications of the Referendum, including on the economy and in the Higher Education sector, and stressed the need for caution on triggering Article 50 until the UK had entered into negotiations with the EU to determine what Brexit would entail.
As President of the UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA), Lord Bilimoria gave the opening keynote speech at the UKCISA Annual Conference 2016 on 29th June. In his speech he highlighted the benefits that international students bring to the UK, from economic prosperity, to soft power, to international competitiveness, and reflected on the current political narrative on international students relating to visas, net migration targets, access to work, skills and talent. The potential future development of these policies – especially considering the EU Referendum result – were considered, as was the burning question of the day, where next for the UK’s international student strategy?
A video of his speech is available here
In the last debate on the EU referendum in the House of Lords before the historic vote, Lord Bilimoria spoke about the implications of the UK leaving the EU. In his speech, Lord Bilimoria reaffirmed his status as a Eurosceptic who reluctantly supports the UK’s continued membership of the EU. He noted the issues that continue to haunt the European Union, but stressed the many benefits that Britain gains remaining a member, while dispatching a number of myths that those campaigning to leave the EU have propagated over the course of the referendum campaign.