FOREIGN students in higher education give a £5.5m-a-year boost to the Oxford economy, a report has revealed.

Figures compiled for the banking firm Santander show there are 3,740 foreign students in Oxford, each spending an average of £93 a week on shopping, bars, restaurants, and travel.

The statistics show the weak pound has helped boost the spending power of students, with those from the United States having 25 per cent more spending power this year than in 2007.

The research also found female foreign students spend an average of £95 a week, while their male counterparts spend £91.

The amount spent in Oxford is on top of the £39.1m in tuition fees that foreign students pay to the UK higher-education institutions each year.

Luis Juste, UK director of Santander Universities, said: “Foreign students should be viewed as an opportunity, not a threat, and I believe they are a key element in the UK’s economic recovery as well as a key support to our higher education institutions now and in the future.”

  • The report came as David Cameron pledged to make Britain one of the top five tourist destinations in the world.

The Prime Minister and Witney MP said in a speech yesterday that the income generated from the £115bn-a-year tourism sector was “fundamental” to rebuilding the UK economy. He said it was essential to take the opportunity offered by a decade of major sporting events in the UK – starting with the 2012 London Olympics – to restore its fortunes after what he called Labour’s “neglect”.