COMMONWEALTH SCHOLARSHIPS

That this House notes with concern the potential impact of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's (FCO) decision to withdraw funding from Commonwealth and Chevening scholarships on the capacity of the UK to attract high quality doctoral students from the countries concerned, on opportunities for UK citizens to secure reciprocal scholarships from other Commonwealth countries, and on international support for the Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Plan (CSFP) as it approaches its 50th anniversary; recognises that the move is inconsistent with the Prime Minister's wider initiative on internationalisation of UK higher education; notes the outstanding record of Commonwealth scholarships in producing future leaders in countries affected by the FCO decision; and calls upon the Government both to ensure that future scholarships to Commonwealth countries are offered through the mechanisms of the CSFP, and that the UK provides substantial support for the CSFP Endowment Fund, which is being set up at the request of Commonwealth education ministers.