The United Kingdom(UK) Prime Minister, Keir Starmer has announced a tougher rules on work and study visas in a major crackdown on UK immigration to reduce migration numbers.l
The Prime Minister in a Press Conference in Downing Street on Monday said the country needed a “clean break from the past” to fix a “broken” immigration system.
He however assured that net migration, which stood at 728,000 in the year to June 2024, according to the UK Home Office, would fall “significantly” under his government.
“Migration will fall, that’s a promise. Every area of the immigration system, including work, family and study, will be tightened up so we have more control. Enforcement will be tougher than ever,” Starmer declared.
The Prime Minister said that under the new plans, overseas care workers would no longer be eligible for UK visas.
“For years, we’ve had a system that encourages businesses to bring in lower-paid workers rather than invest in our young people. That is the Britain this broken system has created. It ends now,” Starmer said.
Other key measures include raising the English language requirement for visa applicants and extending the minimum period of residency required to apply for permanent settlement from five to ten years.
Starmer said the changes would “back British workers” and reward “those who genuinely contribute to Britain’s growth and society. Settlement in this country must be a privilege that is earned, not a right automatically granted.”
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