Andy Burnham just showed he’s weak on immigration
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has been forced into a massive climbdown after Labour Left-wingers declared war on her immigration reforms – and Andy Burnham refused to back her. The Home Secretary has watered down plans to require migrants to wait up to 15 years before they receive “indefinite leave to remain” or “settled status”.
TL;DR
- Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood's immigration reforms have been watered down following opposition from Labour MPs and Andy Burnham.
- The original plan required migrants to wait up to 15 years for "indefinite leave to remain" or "settled status".
- Labour MPs argued that extending the wait period retrospectively was unfair to those already in the UK.
- Foreign care workers earning at least £25,000 a year will now only have to wait five years for permanent settlement.
- Mahmood had previously highlighted concerns about the cost of low-skilled migration to taxpayers, estimating it at £10 billion over the lifetime of migrants.
- The changes could have impacted access to welfare, free healthcare, and social housing for migrants.