The Reform policy to abolish indefinite leave to remain (ILR) and force immigrants to reapply for five-year visas, while making it harder to obtain citizenship, was also rounded on by industry for threatening economic growth and by NHS chiefs as a “kick in the teeth” for health and care workers that could bring the sector to its knees.
The backlash came after Reform said it would axe ILR even for current immigrants who have it, make them reapply for five-year visas with higher salary thresholds.
This raises the possibility that with increased criteria – such as higher salary thresholds for work visas (from the current £38,700 to aroud £60,000) – a migrant currently with indefinite leave to remain could fail to get a new visa after five years and face deportation.
This is because anyone who is rejected from one of Reform’s new five-year visas would ultimately face deportation via its removal plan for Channel migrants announced last month.
Researcher Ben Brindle told The i Paper: “The newly announced policies imply the possibility that British citizens’ spouses, and parents who have children who are British citizens, could be removed irrespective of whether this separates them from their British children.
“With a parliamentary majority, that’s something they could do.”
Racial abuse directed at NHS workers
NHS Providers, the membership organisation for trusts, said removing the rights of health and care workers retrospectively would be “unacceptable.”
“Reports of racial abuse being directed at healthcare workers in recent weeks are horrific. Politicians must think about the real-life consequences of their rhetoric.”
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage and Zia Yusuf reveal during the Reform UK weekly press conference on Monday. (Photo by Peter Nicholls/Getty Images)“The policy of retrospectively removing people’s rights in this way would be unprecedented, leaving migrant nursing staff unable to work or access welfare, despite having paid tax.
The British Chambers of Commerce said businesses were already struggling with “increased labour costs coupled with an ongoing skills crisis”, with 73 per cent of firms reporting difficulties hiring staff with a “direct impact on economic growth”.
Reform was meanwhile facing questions over claims that the plans would save £230bn in future costs to taxpayers by banning 800,000 so-called “Boriswave” immigrants who arrived in the country after Brexit between 2020 and 2024 under Boris Johnson’s premiership, from claiming benefits.
The Migration Observatory meanwhile argued that the employment rate of Boriswave immigrants was likely at 58 per cent or higher, suggesting more are contributing by paying taxes than those simply taking out of the state through benefits.
A Conservative former Home Office insider said the policy “sounds like it was made up at the pub”, and would lead to “loads of case studies” of families being broken up “which people would be really angry about”.
Policy will appeal to Reform voters
Chris Hopkins of pollsters Savanta said the policy would be popular among Reform voters.
“But it sounds good. It sounds like they are tougher on immigration than the government or the Conservatives, and that’s how they want to appear. Whether it appeals to the electorate as a whole isn’t really the point, I don’t think.”
square KITTY DONALDSON Farage's immigration policy is all vibes, no detail
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“Far too many that have come don’t work, have never worked and never will work,” he said.
He told a press conference his plans meant workers would see wages rise under his plans.
He said: “I do repeat the point that mass, unskilled migration has driven in many, many cases, the minimum wage to become the maximum wage. Under our proposals, would pay go up, yes it would go up a bit, and I think that’s a good thing, not a bad thing. Would our proposals help train British people for jobs? It would.”
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