Theresa May, Britain’s home secretary, has barely disguised her ambition to succeed David Cameron as Conservative leader. To achieve this, she has worked hard to burnish¹ her credentials² with the Tory right. This has sometimes led her to take positions that appeal to backbench MPs but are much harder to square with Britain’s economic interest.

英国内政大臣特里萨•梅(Theresa May)几乎从不掩饰其想接替戴维•卡梅伦(David Cameron)成为保守党(Conservative)领袖的野心。为达成这一目的，她一直努力让自己在保守党右翼面前显得更具资格。有时，这使得她采取了取悦后座议员的立场，但却很难与英国的经济利益保持一致。

Immigration is one issue on which Ms May has allowed personal political tactics to trump⁴ sensible policy. The latest sign of this is a proposal that emerged from her office over the weekend regarding foreign students who have graduated from British universities and want to work in the UK.

在移民问题上，梅放任自己的个人政治策略凌驾于合理政策之上。最新的表现就是，其办公室上周末提出了一个计划，针对的目标是那些从英国大学毕业、希望留在英国工作的留学生。

As is well known, the principle of free movement across the EU means the UK can do nothing to stop European citizens working in Britain. If they are to cut migration³, the Conservatives therefore must restrict entry for people from outside the EU. Hence, students from India, China and the Middle East are increasingly in Ms May’s sights.

众所周知，欧盟(EU)的公民自由迁移原则意味着英国不能阻止欧洲公民在英国工作。因此，如果想要削减移民人数，保守党必须限制欧盟以外国家的移民进入英国。于是从印度、中国和中东来的留学生日益成为梅的目标。

These individuals hope to study in UK universities, and part of the attraction is that they might later find a job in Britain. Ms May has already made this harder, insisting that applicants⁵ for a work visa must earn at least £20,500 a year. Now she is going further. According to her advisers⁶, the home secretary wants the next Conservative manifesto⁷ to propose that non-EU students must leave the UK after graduation before applying for a new visa of any kind.

这些留学生希望在英国的大学学习，其中部分吸引力在于，他们毕业后也许能在英国找一份工作。而梅对工作签证的申请者年薪必须达到至少20500英镑的要求，已经使得他们的愿望更难实现。如今她更进一步。据她的顾问称，这位内政大臣希望明年的保守党竞选纲领提议，非欧盟留学生必须在毕业后离开英国，而后再申请所需的任何新签证。

Colleges and universities that sponsor foreign students would be legally required to oversee⁸ their departure — and would be fined if they failed to do so.

接收留学生的学院和大学依法将必须监督留学生离境，如果未能照做，将被处以罚款。

Ms May’s proposal may appeal to some on the Tory right but runs against the country’s interest. Britain needs to do far more to attract students from China and India. Highly skilled immigrants are precisely⁹ the ones that a developed economy needs. Her idea would also harm British universities — one of the country’s few export successes. Ms May’s restrictions¹⁰, and their accompanying rhetoric¹¹, have already seen university enrolments from India drop by almost 50 per cent.

梅的拟议计划可能会迎合部分保守党右翼人士，但却与英国利益背道而驰。英国需要采取更多行动以吸引来自中国和印度的留学生。高技能移民正是发达经济体所需要的群体。她的提议也会损害英国的大学——这是英国少数几个出口成功点之一。梅对留学生的限制以及随之而来的言辞，已经使得高校入学的印度留学生大幅减少了将近50%。

The government should ensure that foreign students do not stay in the UK illegally after graduation. But it is self-defeating to force them to leave immediately. Foreign graduates are in demand in the US and Europe, and will go somewhere more welcoming.

英国政府应该确保留学生在毕业后不在非法情况下留在英国。但是，如果迫使他们立即离开，会适得其反。美国和欧洲都需要外国毕业生，这些人将去往更欢迎他们的地方。

The Conservatives have wisely lowered the temperature on immigration. Mr Cameron recently made a conciliatory speech, stressing the contribution migrants make to the UK. Ms May’s intervention¹² is a piece of low politics. Her cabinet colleagues should treat it with the disdain¹³ it deserves.

保守党已经明智地给移民问题降温。卡梅伦近期做出了安抚性的发言，强调了移民对英国做出的贡献。梅的介入是一个低级的政治策略。其他内阁成员理应对此不屑一顾，这是它应得的。