- Higher Minimum salary
- Visa Reduction and Changes
- Rwanda Agreement for Deportation
To mitigate legal migration, the government intends to raise the minimum salary requirement for foreign labourers. This will be disclosed as an additional measure today.
Today, the government is scheduled to unveil a series of initiatives designed to mitigate the unprecedented surge in lawful migration.
On Monday, it is anticipated that Home Secretary James Cleverly will inform the House of Commons that the minimal salary threshold for a skilled foreign worker will be substantially increased from £26,200 to an amount exceeding £35,000.
Immigration Minister Robert Jenrick has advocated for measures such as reducing the number of health and social care visas and revising the shortage occupation list, both of which are expected to be announced by Mr Cleverly.
Senior members of Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s party reacted negatively to the release of new data indicating that migration has reached an all-time high, despite the Conservatives’ pledge in their 2019 manifesto to reduce the figure.
The updated ONS predictions for net migration to the UK in the year to December 2022 are a record 745,000.
The prime minister proclaimed that the figures are “excessively elevated” and swore to “do whatever is required” to reduce them.
It is understood that Mr Jenrick, who proposed a five-point plan including a limit on the number of health and social care visas and an increase in the minimum salary threshold, exerted particular pressure on him.
In the year ending September 2023, the Home Office issued 143,990 health and care worker visas. This number is more than double the 61,274 visas issued in September 2022.
However, in light of the workforce crisis and the expanding NHS waiting list, any measures restricting these visas would almost certainly stir controversy.
In addition to reducing the issuance of these visas, the government may impose restrictions on the number of dependents that foreign social workers and health professionals are permitted to bring to the United Kingdom.
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As initially reported by The Telegraph, an organisation that specialises in covering today’s announcement, the shortage occupation list, an initiative that permits foreign workers to be compensated at a rate 20% below the prevailing rate in positions where skilled labour is scarce, will also undergo a revision.
According to sources who spoke with the newspaper, the list would be “thoroughly scrubbed,” with few exceptions tolerated.
Shrewdly endeavours to reach a Rwanda agreement
Mr. Cleverly is also trying to negotiate a new treaty with Rwanda to save the Supreme Court-prohibited deportation plan.
On Monday, reports surfaced indicating that British solicitors might be dispatched to courts in Kigali. This is facilitated by a new treaty designed to resolve the judges’ concerns so that flights can resume.
The programme, announced in April 2022, sought to return small vessel migrants to Rwanda for asylum. This was instead of seeking asylum in the United Kingdom.
However, the highest court of the United Kingdom raised apprehensions that some individuals might be returned to their country of origin from which they were fleeing, Rwanda, in violation of international law.
It is believed that Mr Cleverly is nearing completion of a new treaty that will formalise the plan’s legality. He may travel to the African country this week to affix his signature.
In addition, domestic legislation is being formulated to enable the UK Parliament to declare Rwanda a secure haven for asylum applicants arriving in the country, should an agreement be reached.
The second-most channel passages seen in history
After becoming prime minister, Mr. Sunak made five promises, including “stop the boats”. The initiative is regarded as critical to that objective.
Data released today shows more people crossing the English Channel in tiny vessels this year than in 2021. Consequently, the total number of arrivals in 2023 will rank second all-time.
As of 2 December, the Home Office reported 28,972 migrants crossing the Channel, up from 28,395 in 2021.
Nevertheless, the present tally for 2023 is 34% lower than the all-time high of 45,728 crossings set in 2022.
