Ask your MP to join parliamentary debate on UK ELT this Wednesday 1 July

Covid-19's impact on the UK ELT sector is being debated in Parliament this Wednesday and our case will be far stronger with supportive MPs in the room with knowledge of our valuable industry.

We are therefore calling on all our members and supporters to urgently contact constituency MPs and encourage them to attend. We have produced an email template below to help.

The debate has been requested by Eastbourne's Conservative MP, Caroline Ansell, who will outline the impact Covid-19 has had on UK ELT and what the Government could and should do to mitigate this. Graham Stuart, Minister for Exports at the Department for International Trade, will respond on behalf of the Government.

Adjournment debates last just 30 minutes and, while there is no motion or vote, they can be very effective for highlighting important issues like the difficulties facing our £1.4bn industry.

We are providing briefing notes for Caroline Ansell MP on business rates relief, ongoing Government support and wider issues and hope that she will be able to raise most of our concerns.

Join the debate: template letter for your MP

Dear [MP's NAME], 

Could you attend the 1 July Adjournment Debate on ELT and Covid-19 on our behalf?

I represent [CENTRE NAME] in [LOCATION], an accredited English language teaching centre. At this time of year we would normally be full of staff and international students, who provide plenty of work for local taxi drivers, cafes, shops, tourist attractions and the local families who host them.

Covid-19 means our centre is empty and facing severe financial difficulty. A survey by our national body, English UK, has found that around 45% of ELT centres are unlikely to reopen until January 2021, if at all.

This is an industry which in normal years brings 550,000 students and £1.4bn to the UK each year, supporting over 35,000 jobs, providing a stepping-stone into our universities and bringing immeasurable soft power benefits.

Our industry has been the world leader in ELT, but it is a very competitive market and our main rivals – including Canada, Australia and Ireland – not only have more favourable visa regimes but are more likely to be able to attract any students willing to travel as they have had significantly smaller Covid-19 outbreak than the UK.

These issues will be raised by Caroline Ansell, the MP for Eastbourne, in an adjournment debate on Wednesday 1 July. Graham Stuart, Minister for Exports at the Department for International Trade, will respond on behalf of the Government.

We are asking you to add your voice to Ms Ansell's, highlighting the very real threat to our industry and encouraging the Government to provide us with targeted support until we can rebuild next summer season.

Yours sincerely, 

[YOUR NAME + TITLE]