It may impact the rate of growth and the number of innovations that create growth in the long-run," he told The Independent.He said the problem was exacerbated by the relatively low level of university education in the UK, which means the exodus of professionals is more keenly felt. Fewer than 20 per cent of Britons are educated to degree level and the figures are higher on the Continent - 27 per cent in Belgium, 25 per cent in Germany and 22 in France - and way below levels in the US.His research suggested that British graduates were mainly moving to the US, Canada and Australia. "That is not surprising given the common language," he said.But he said the sheer scale of emigration was much higher than rivals such as Germany. "Many Germans go to the US but the British are everywhere," he said. "You can go to any country and you will find a British graduate - that's why the figures are so high."The most attractive destination is the US, which has 400,000 Britons followed by Canada and Australia with 365,000 each, and 200,000 in the rest of the EU. Some 120,000 go to other member countries of the Organisation of Economic Co-operation and Development which includes states such as Saudi Arabia and South Korea.Graduates are even going to India to work in call centres. Last week, a survey found that UK graduates were prepared to fill an expected 16,000 Indian call-centre vacancies by 2009.
More than 1.44 million graduates have left the UK to look for more highly paid jobs in countries such as the United States, Canada and Australia. That far outweighs 1.26 million immigrant graduates in the UK, leaving a net "brain loss" of some 200,000 people. The findings will fuel concerns that Britain's failure to defend its manufacturing, science and university base is pushing highly skilled workers overseas and risks damaging long-term productivity.The scale of the emigration as a share of the total skilled workforce is also high. At 16.7 per cent - or one in six graduates - it is much higher than any other major industrialised country. Britain has lost more skilled workers to the global "brain drain" than any other country, according to a report by the World Bank. But that effect has waned, and Kate Moss and Sienna Miller are credited with the rise of this season's most fashionable look - skinny jeans tucked into boots.The UK jeans market is worth £1.3bn, with sales up by 56 per cent compared to five years ago, according to a report by market analysts Mintel. The average woman owns eight pairs, and sales in the female sector have soared by 72 per cent since 2000.How much?* Tesco Cherokee boot cut: £15* Asda George skinny: £16* Calvin Klein boot cut: £240* Sass & Bide Misfit: £135* Rock & Republic by Victoria Beckham: £199. Industry insiders blame middle-aged denim wearers such as Tony Blair and the Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson for the unpopularity of jeans in the 1990s.
Asda scored a sell-out hit this year with a £20 dress, inspired by French design house Chloe.Primark and Matalan have also become adept at quickly churning out cut-price versions of catwalk couture within weeks of the international fashion shows.After spending a decade in the fashion doldrums, denim is making a comeback, particularly among women. Last month, Asda also launched a range of fashion jeans - priced between £12 and £18 - under its George label, based on the latest styles.A spokeswoman said: "It's just extending the range of jeans at a time when denim is becoming fashionable again, rather than just a basic item in the wardrobe."It is not the first time that the big supermarkets have muscled in on designer clothing. They are really popular with builders, who previously had to spend quite a lot of money on just a basic pair of jeans."Now they don't worry if they split them or get paint on them, because they can easily afford another pair. The Cherokee jeans are much more about fashion; there are different cuts, including the skinny cut, and they are being marketed as a premium product because we know customers want that choice."The Cherokee skinny jeans will retail at around £15, a tenth of the price of a designer denim range they are modelled on, such as Sass & Bide. Tesco sells about 50,000 pairs of its value jeans a week, and has spotted a new niche in the denim market. It is also boosted by the fact denim is back "in".A Tesco spokeswoman said the new jeans in its Cherokee range - launched yesterday - are the clothing equivalent of the supermarket's "Finest" range of food, and are designed to entice fashionistas not bargain hunters.She said: "Our £3 jeans are not a fashion item - they are much more about functional wear. The series of strategies that include shooting suspected suicide bombers in the head have become some of the most controversial police tactics.
