Tory MPs urge Rishi Sunak to cut 'destabilising' immigration
A group of backbenchers says the prime minister should end the temporary visa scheme for care workers and cap the number of refugees who can settle in the UK.
Monday 3 July 2023 16:36, UK
Right-wing Tory MPs have urged Rishi Sunak to take action to reduce immigration, saying the system is "too lenient".
The New Conservatives group, made up of 25 MPs on the right of the party, have put forward a 12-point plan to the prime minister in a report released on Monday, including ending the temporary visa scheme for care workers and capping the number of refugees who are allowed to settle in the UK.
The group, which includes the party's deputy chairman, Lee Anderson, said reducing the number of migrants coming to the country was a key part of Tory victories in so-called red wall seats in 2019, and the current level is having "destabilising economic and cultural consequences".
Politics live: Right-wing Tories challenge Sunak over immigration
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Speaking at the launch, Tory MP Miriam Cates said: "If we, as Conservatives, are to prove that we believe in democracy, that we are committed to governing for the British people, not in spite of the British people, then we must honour our promise and dramatically cut net migration before the next election.
"A failure to keep numbers down despite a clear mandate and repeated promises, raises deep concerns about national and cultural security and sovereignty and democracy."
But Number 10 has already ruled out some of the group's suggestions, with the PM's official spokesman saying the government is "striking the right balance" with its existing plans.
The document comes as pressure mounts on Mr Sunak from within his own party over his immigration policies.
Net migration rose to 606,000 in the past year - the highest figure on record - despite numerous pledges from the Conservatives in the past 13 years to bring the numbers down.
The PM also faces trouble in the courts over his policy to tackle illegal migration, with the Court of Appeal ruling this week that the government's plan to send people to Rwanda is unlawful.
The report's author, Tory MP Tom Hunt, insisted it was not an attempt to challenge the PM, and the group wanted to "work with the government constructively".
He told Sky News: "I think it's unhealthy that there is a disconnect between where most people are and what we want net migration to be and the current reality. We've got to address that.
"We are not the government, we are a group of members of parliament who care passionately about this issue and want to repay the trust that was put in it by our voters, who also care about this issue massively."
Mr Hunt added: "I think [the report] is a healthy contribution to the debate. Actually. I think it's healthy now we've got control of our legal migration system that there is a bit of a debate about it.
"I don't think that's a bad thing. I don't think it's undermining the prime minister. We support the prime minister - he supports many of our aims and objectives - and we look forward to working with him to try and get net migration to a much more sustainable level."
During Home Office questions in the Commons, Labour's shadow home secretary, Yvette Cooper, poked fun at Mr Anderson's absence from the report's launch amid rumours he had stayed away after getting a ticking off from the government for putting his name to the document, despite his party role.
"Will the home secretary wish the deputy chairman of the Conservative Party a speedy recovery from the terrible sick bug which I understand has prevented him from launching this morning an entirely different Conservative immigration policy to the policy of the Conservative home secretary?" she asked Suella Braverman.
The minister did not distance herself from the report, but instead launched an attack on Labour, who she claimed wanted "open borders and unlimited migration".
However, Ms Cooper hit back, saying backbenchers were "writing her immigration policy because they don't think she is up to the job".
The New Conservatives claim ending the care worker visa scheme could cut immigration numbers by more than 80,000, saying it should only have been temporary to help during the pandemic.
The PM's official spokesman said it was "not an approach we're considering currently", adding: "We know there is significant demand in the care sector for staff.
"We are boosting domestic staff as I've said and backing that with hundreds of millions of pounds in support... there's lots we're doing but right now we think we're striking the right balance."
The group is also calling for the main skilled work visa salary threshold to be raised to £38,000.
Mr Hunt said: "Ultimately, we can't be addicted to this cheap labour from abroad. We've got to move away from that.
"We've got to look at our education system and we've got to ask ourselves a question, why don't we have the skills we need?"
Another member of the group, James Daly, asked Ms Braverman in the Commons if she would support raising the salary threshold.
She said the government "always keeps the salary threshold under review", adding: "But as I said, net migration is too high and we need to get numbers down.
"Employers need to recruit more people here, rather than advertise abroad so much. We also need to get more people off welfare and back into economic activity, and our welfare reforms will help that objective.
"And we cannot ignore the pressures that record levels of people coming to the UK puts on housing supply, public services and on community relations. That's why we need to focus on lowering net migration."
The group also wants a 20,000-person cap on refugee resettlement - though they said it could be lifted "to respond to an unforeseen emergency, such as a natural disaster or a war".
Number 10 did not rule this out, but said it is for parliament to "make a judgment" rather than the government to fix a figure "unilaterally".
Another call is for study visas to be reserved for "the brightest international students by excluding the poorest performing universities from eligibility criteria".
The government has already introduced plans to stop overseas students from bringing dependents to the country in a bid to curb immigration numbers.
Responding to the report, a Home Office spokesperson said: "The government remains committed to reducing overall net migration. Most importantly we are tackling illegal migration by stopping the boats and delivering control of our borders.
"We will continue to strike the right balance between supporting the UK economy through skilled worker visas and upholding our commitment to reduce migration over time."