PM Starmer’s shift to the right on immigration risks alienating Labour’s large base of left-of-centre supporters.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer promises to “finally take back control” of the United Kingdom’s borders as his Labour government unveils policies designed to reduce legal immigration and fend off rising support for the hard right.
“Every area of the immigration system, including work, family and study, will be tightened up so we have more control,” he told reporters at a Downing Street news conference on Monday.
Starmer announced he was ending an “experiment in open borders” that saw net migration rise to nearly one million people under the previous Conservative government, which lost last year’s general election.
Labour has been traditionally more sympathetic to immigration than the Conservative Party. Starmer, a former human rights lawyer who voted for the UK to remain part of the European Union, is under renewed pressure to tackle the issue after the anti-immigration Reform UK party’s gains in recent local elections.
However, Starmer’s shift to the right on immigration risks alienating Labour’s large base of left-of-centre supporters and losing their votes to the Liberal Democrats and the Greens.
The government’s Immigration White Paper policy document includes plans to cut overseas care workers and increase from five to 10 years the length of time people will have to live in the UK before qualifying for settlement and citizenship.
English-language rules would also be strengthened with all adult dependants required to demonstrate a basic understanding while the length of time students may stay in the UK after completing their studies would be reduced.
The white paper also proposes new powers to deport foreigners who commit offences in the country. Currently, the government is only informed of foreign nationals who receive prison sentences while under the new arrangements all foreign nationals convicted of offences would be flagged for the government.
The document also proposes new visa controls requiring foreign skilled workers to have a university degree to secure a job in the UK.
The prime minister acknowledged that migrants “make a massive contribution” to Britain but alleged the country risks becoming an “island of strangers” without more controls. He added that he wants net migration to fall “significantly” by the next election, likely in 2029, but refused to say by how much.
Labour promised in its general election manifesto last year to significantly reduce net migration, which stood at 728,000 in the 12 months to June. It had peaked at 906,000 in 2023 after averaging 200,000 a year for most of the 2010s.
Arch-eurosceptic Nigel Farage’s Reform party won more than 670 local council seats this month as well as its first two mayoral posts. It is also riding high in national polls while Labour is struggling after its 2024 landslide general election victory.
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