SUSPENSION OF BRITISH COUNCIL LANGUAGE ASSISTANTSHIP SCHEME

That this House is concerned about the uncertainty of funding for the British Council Language Assistantship Scheme; notes that this is a well-established and highly valued programme, which provides an invaluable learning experience for 2,500 UK students per year; recognises that the scheme is cost-effective and excellent value for money, with the 2009-10 programme only costing 747,409; proposes that the suspension of this reciprocal exchange scheme could jeopardise bilateral agreements with many countries; regrets that the ambitions of graduates in the EU and global job market will be severely hindered if this scheme is discontinued; believes that this scheme has a very significant impact on the education of pupils in primary and secondary education, with assistantships often being the only opportunity for pupils to meet and learn from a native speaker; and calls on the Government to re-evaluate the suspension of this valuable scheme and to at least postpone the suspension of funding for the programme so that those who have planned to apply as part of their current degree programme can still do so.