Kent Tonight - Monday 26th August 2024
Catch up with all the latest news across your county with Gabriel Morris
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00:00Hello, good evening and welcome to Kentonite live here on KMTV on this
00:29bank holiday special Monday the 26th of August. I'm Gabriel Morrison here on your top stories.
00:35Less international. Kent universities face financial trouble ahead of dropping overseas
00:40students. In general, a fall in applications from international students is likely to create
00:46an increased challenge when it comes to university finances. Revolutionary change.
00:52Tunbridge MP sets up case to be next Tory leader. What we need to do is offer a proper
00:57conservative agenda that makes sure that we are investing in people.
01:03And 10 years of Boeing. University of Kent hosts 10th annual Boeing festival for one last summer
01:09celebration this August. Generally 12,000 people over the weekend, families in Kent and beyond I
01:16think. Love it. It's a genuine success story. Good evening. First and our universities across
01:31the country and here in Kent could face financial troubles as the number of international workers
01:36and students applying to the UK has fallen with up to 15% fewer sponsored student fees
01:42received last month. Multiple university campuses in Kent alone. This presents a unique
01:48economic challenge for campuses across the county. David has the story.
01:53The United Kingdom is known for its reputation for high quality university level education.
01:58But recent statistics have shown that the number of international students applying for UK
02:02universities has fallen. And Kent is no exception. With three different universities having campuses
02:08in the county, it could provide a challenge in terms of their revenue. I spoke to a student from
02:13the University of Kent Medway campus about their own experience. Main challenge being many students
02:20who come here, they don't have enough experience in the field on what they're pursuing. Like most
02:26of the students, all my friends have come here for master's. At the master's level, you should
02:34at least have like two years experience beforehand before pursuing your master's
02:38graduate level. So then only you can get into some internship or directly get into graduate jobs.
02:45While many students have come for master's programmes, many come at the undergraduate
02:49level as well. As for possible solutions, this could mean increased prices for domestic students
02:55by universities that need to better their profits. There is the potential of the government helping
03:00increase their direct funding of universities. But this all comes at a certain political and
03:04economic cost. Well, much of how the fall in applications from international students to
03:10study at UK universities depends on what's driving that fall. So if the main driver is the fact that
03:18partners and children can no longer accompany international students to the UK,
03:22and international students are put off from UK universities because of that, then that could
03:28create increased funding challenges. In general, a fall in applications from international students
03:34is likely to create an increased challenge when it comes to university finances.
03:39This effect on international students is backed by government-released statistics on sponsored
03:43study visa applications, with just more than 180,000 students applying last year, and nearly
03:4970,000 dependents, to now around 150,000 students this year, but a drop of around 50,000 dependents.
03:58In a statement, universities UK said,
04:00Attracting overseas students can be difficult in a volatile global environment. The reputation of
04:05our universities, backed up by positive messaging from our current government, will help attract
04:09students to study here. More than 10% of the University of Kent student body is made up of
04:14international students, all who pay an increased rate. So universities across the county and the
04:19country will be looking on how they can attract overseas students. Finn McDermid for KMTV.
04:25Now, Tom Tugendhat has been touring Kent, making his case to be the next Conservative leader.
04:30The Tunbridge MP began his regional tour of Chatham, a former Tory stronghold that was won
04:36by Labour back in July. He believes the key to revitalising his party's fortune lies in
04:41revolutionary change, though he says it's difficult to predict the direction the party
04:44should take with four years of Labour government ahead. At Chatham Towns Ground, making his pitch
04:51to Conservative members. Tom Tugendhat is in the line-up to be the next Tory leader.
04:56He's been across Kent trying to score more support, kicking off in what was one of the
05:01county's safest Conservative seats till the general election, where Labour booted his party out.
05:07What we need to do is we need to be bringing back Tory voters from all parts. Of course,
05:12we need those who chose reform to come back. We also need those who chose Labour or the Lib Dems
05:17or those who stayed away to come back. What we need to do is offer a proper Conservative agenda
05:21that makes sure that we are investing in people. That means investing in belonging, investing in
05:26place and giving people that sense of identity, that pride in our community that is so important.
05:32I don't know if I support Chatham Towns' new sign-in, by the looks of it, in Tom Tugendhat.
05:37I think he's got a lot to do to prove himself, not just on the football pitch, but certainly
05:42as a potential leader of the opposition. It's good for democracy to have strong opposition,
05:46and I look forward to there being a leader of the opposition for the Conservative party
05:50that can hold the government to account.
05:52The shadow security minister said he has a record of delivering and that a revolutionary
05:56change is needed within the party. But for lifelong Conservative members,
06:01what direction do they think their party needs to go in?
06:04I believe that a lot of the outcome of the recent election was because people didn't
06:09understand what we stand for, which is small government, low taxation. Some of the actions
06:16that have been taken in the last couple of years dealing with instances such as the pandemic,
06:22for example, they weren't necessarily our traditional policies that were employed to
06:27deal with that. And this is where we have to get back to core values.
06:32However, members won't get a vote till MPs whittle the six Tory hopefuls down to two.
06:37If the Tunbridge MP wins the contest, his chance to become prime minister won't likely be till 2029.
06:45What departments might need cutting back on their spending and their funding?
06:49Well, we've got four years of opposition, which is appalling, but we've got four years of Labour
06:54overspending, under delivering that we're going to have to correct for. So I'm not going to be
06:58making commitments on what changes need to be done, because I'm sure that Labour will be damaging so
07:02much between now and then. It's hard to predict.
07:05His party might have been relegated from the government earlier this year,
07:09but a Kent Tory hopeful believes he has what it takes to gain conservative promotion
07:15back to number 10 once more. Gabriel Morris in Chatham.
07:21Now, take a look at this weather phenomenon spotted off the Kent coast.
07:25On a sailor film, this water spout was visiting Hive Beach this morning.
07:30The twister was a couple of miles out to sea, but nonetheless still big enough to be seen
07:35with the naked eye. It's obviously not the first time we've seen one of these.
07:38Loads more on our website, kntv.co.uk and Kent Online.
07:41If you've seen something like that, do send us a video to our website.
07:47Now, a lot has happened since 2019, but for a pair of Kent towns, it's a wave of nostalgia
07:51as a five-year-old parade returns to their high street. Citybourne Carnival saw hundreds as it
07:57drove through Milton Regis and Citybourne High Street this weekend. It left Milton Recreation
08:02Ground at midday and was led by a horse-drawn wagon with the Mayor of Swale, Councillor Ben
08:06Martin and Miss Citybourne on board. Members of the public and local businesses pulled out
08:10all the stops for the parade floats, including Tim Bell, who took part,
08:14saluting from his homemade tank. And you can read that on our website.
08:21And finally, the University of Kent in Canterbury has hosted its 10th Annual Boeing Festival,
08:26taking place every August bank holiday. The family-focused celebration welcomes artists,
08:30musicians and performers from across Europe who have played to around 12,000 people. This year's
08:36also hosted an arts workshop, which was also a research project into how children view old age.
08:41Well, what do they think? Have you like us more?
08:48Bouncing back to Canterbury for its 10th year, the Boeing Festival transforms the University
08:54of Kent campus into a venue for artists and performers. This bank holiday weekend,
09:01they've come from right across the UK. Did you know that the Boeing Festival,
09:06by its name, because the Canterbury campus of the University of Kent,
09:10is famous for its large amount of rabbits? It feels great. I mean, obviously, I've actually
09:15only been here before, so I inherited Boeing, but it's wonderful. I mean, there's, you know,
09:20see for yourself what the campus looks like. It's the biggest event in the campus's calendar now,
09:25and it obviously happens when the campus is closed, fortunately. But it is, you know,
09:30generally 12,000 people over the weekend, families in Kent and beyond, I think, love it.
09:36It's a genuine success story of our programme. One of the themes of Boeing this year is getting
09:42people to think about what it means to live well as you get older. The arts and crafts workshop
09:48doubles as a research project. This is just a start for the conversation, so
09:54families come to our table, they do this, but then we also ask them how comfortable they are
10:03to be speaking about old age, ill health, the need for care from someone else, and also end of life,
10:13because we are all humans, and it will happen at some point. I think they've probably learned that
10:23anyone can be an artist. They can come in and get involved in something which is fairly
10:31accessible, depending on their age or their abilities, which is really lovely.
10:36There's no wrong or right, you know, nobody's sort of saying, no, that's the wrong way to do it,
10:40or that's the right way to do it. So it's very, just the freedom of using their own imagination,
10:47which is really important. The project will then go on display in the campus's Gombenkean
10:52in March next year. Henry Luck for KMTV in Canterbury.
11:00And now it's time for a look at the weather.
11:02Well, rest of the bank holiday. It's cooling down, loads of 13 highs of 16, but clear skies for everyone across the county.
11:14Waking up tomorrow morning with highs of 21 and sun everywhere across Kent. Warming up even more
11:21into the afternoon, highs of 24, lows of 21 down in Dover. Mostly sunny throughout, and this is what
11:27the next few days look like. Continuously getting warmer, up to 28 degrees on Friday.
11:42Well, that's it from us this evening on Kent. We'll be back at eight with The Late Bulletin.
11:46Enjoy the rest of your bank holiday.