How Peppa Pig, Mr Bean and Dua Lipa earn billions for UK by persuading foreigners to like us
British culture is a key factor in persuading overseas students to come to this country to study
According to a recent report by London Economics, the 404,500 students from other countries who started their courses in 2024/25 will end up costing the British taxpayer £4.7 billion. However, before anyone starts staging protests outside university halls of residence, the researchers also found that they will generate economic benefits totalling a whopping £45.1bn.
So why are all these overseas students quite so keen to come? Is it the UK’s world-class universities, the fact that Britain is the fifth largest economy in the world, or our surely undeniable status as a global intellectual powerhouse.
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Well, all of that probably does help, to one degree or another. However, it turns out that 83 per cent of international students point to British culture as a key factor.
“Of course!” you say, “Shakespeare, Burns, Austen, The Beatles etc.” Er, well, no actually, it’s more like Peppa Pig, Mr Bean, Dua Lipa and Harry Styles. It’s called soft power and Britain is brilliant at it.
Long may we continue to persuade people in other countries like us.
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