Migration Advisory Committee says the risks are low, despite Tory claims the route is being exploited

There is no evidence of widespread abuse of the UK’s graduate visa route, the government’s immigration advisers have concluded, despite repeated claims from senior Conservatives that it is being exploited to enter the jobs market.

The Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) said the graduate visa entitlement – allowing international students to work for two or three years after graduating – should remain in place. Members said the risks of abuse were relatively low and “not undermining” the integrity and quality of the higher education system.

There is no evidence of widespread abuse specifically for the graduate route. The risks of abuse are relatively low due to the limited number of conditions the route imposes.

There is concern about potential exploitation of both student and graduate visa holders due to poor practices by certain agents who recruit students on to courses and may be mis-selling UK higher education, but this is a separate issue from abuse of the rules of the graduate route.

114,000 graduate route visas were granted for main applicants in 2023 with a further 30,000 granted for dependants.

The use of the graduate route is concentrated among four nationalities: the top four – India, Nigeria, China and Pakistan – account for 70% of all graduate visas with India accounting for over 40%.

Most of those on the graduate route completed postgraduate taught courses.

Court of appeal rejects application to increase Valdo Calocane’s sentence to include jail time

The families of the Nottingham attack victims have criticised the “utterly flawed and under-resourced criminal justice system” after the court of appeal rejected an application to increase Valdo Calocane’s sentence to include jail time.

Calocane, 32, was sentenced to an indefinite hospital order in January after pleading guilty to three counts of manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility due to paranoid schizophrenia, and three counts of attempted murder.

Medical problems blamed on weight, motherhood, menopause or teenage mood swings, say women

Women who were infected with hepatitis C as a result of the infected blood scandal say their medical problems were dismissed by doctors as being related to motherhood, the menopause or teenage mood swings.

Three women who spoke to the Guardian said they struggled to get doctors to take them seriously or test them for hepatitis C, and had to suffer unexplained health problems for decades while the virus, known as the “silent killer”, was causing damage to their bodies.

They are among the estimated more than 30,000 people who were exposed to hepatitis C due to blood transfusions given in the 1970s, 80s and 90s seeking justice and compensation through a public inquiry that will publish its final report on 20 May.

Georgia Laurie, who saved sister from reptile, joins other recipients including police officer who confronted Plymouth shooter

A woman who punched a crocodile in the snout to save her sister is among the recipients of bravery awards included on the king’s first civilian gallantry list.

Georgia Laurie attacked the reptile when it went for her twin, Melissa, dragging her underwater while they were swimming in a lagoon near Puerto Escondido, Mexico, in June 2021. Both sisters were seriously hurt but survived.

Michelle O’Neill tells inquiry in Belfast she is ‘truly sorry’ for going to Bobby Storey’s funeral with 1,800 mourners

Alex Chalk, the justice secretary, is taking questions in the Commons this morning. After he finishes there are two urgent questions (UQs). At 12.30pm a Home Office minister will respond to one from Gavin Robinson, the DUP leader, about yesterday’s court judgment saying asylum seekers in Northern Ireland are protected under the Good Friday agreement from the risk of deportation to Rwanda.

And at around 1.15pm a health minister will respond to a UQ from the Tory Danny Kruger about the proposed World Health Organisation pandemic agreement.

Through their coercive and destabilising actions, the PRC [People’s Republic of China] poses a significant risk to international norms and values.

In cyberspace, we believe that the PRC’s irresponsible actions weaken the security of the internet for all.

We have repeatedly called out Chinese cyber adversaries for activities that threaten the security of the UK or target the institutions important to our society, such as the compromise of the UK Electoral Commission.

Mission to Kyiv by US secretary of state comes after Congress approved long-delayed $60bn aid package; Russia claims to have captured Buhruvatka

Putin to visit China May 16-17

The Russian president, Vladimir Putin, will visit China on May 16-17, Chinese state media reported.

Israeli operation means truce negotiations cannot progress, says Sheikh Mohammed, as estimated 500,000 flee after evacuation order

• Israel deepens offensive in Rafah and re-enters northern areas of Gaza
• ‘Total outrage’: White House condemns Israeli settlers’ attack on Gaza aid trucks

One of ActionAid’s partners in Rafah has paused humanitarian operations there, with the charity warning that aid operations could grind to a “complete halt” as aid workers face an “unprecedented” level of danger making their jobs become “impossible”.

The charity says that aid workers in Rafah are “experiencing the same inhumane living conditions as the rest of the population” and that “virtually no aid” has entered Gaza in recent days despite the deepening humanitarian crisis across the enclave.

Due to fuel shortages and severe security constraints, our aid delivery services in Rafah are temporarily paused. Our partners have received multiple evacuation orders in the past few days, and the ongoing bombardment on Rafah is making it impossible for them to distribute aid safely within Rafah.

The obligation of conflicting parties is not only to ensure that aid gets through the borders but also to reach people inside Gaza.

Researchers say semaglutide, the active ingredient in Wegovy and Ozempic, could be biggest medical breakthrough since statins

A weight loss injection could reduce the risk of heart attacks and benefit the cardiovascular health of millions of adults across the UK, in what could be the largest medical breakthrough since statins, according to a study.

It found that participants taking the medication semaglutide, the active ingredient in brands including Wegovy and Ozempic, had a 20% lower risk of heart attack, stroke, or death due to cardiovascular disease.

Tribunal heard Ramya Nagesh, who was appearing remotely on behalf of nurse witness, fell asleep after eating baked potato

A barrister who wrote a book on sleepwalking is facing a disciplinary tribunal after allegedly falling asleep during a coroner’s inquest.

Ramya Nagesh, a member of commercial chambers in Gray’s Inn Square in London, has been accused by the Bar standards board (BSB) of professional misconduct after falling asleep during a virtual hearing, missing her client giving evidence, the Daily Telegraph first reported.

Klein may be charged over alleged threats and face a fine if convicted, after a member of the production crew made a complaint to police

Joost Klein, the Netherlands’ Eurovision contestant who was disqualified from the competition just hours before the grand final, will probably be charged with making illegal threats, Swedish police have said.

The 26-year-old favourite to win was expelled from the competition in Malmö, unprecedented in the 68-year history of Eurovision, after a female member of the production crew made a complaint about an alleged “backstage incident” to Swedish police.