Kemi Badenoch, leader of the Conservative Party, has declared that migrants granted indefinite leave to remain (ILR) under Labour's revised immigration policies could have their status revoked by a future Conservative government if they are not deemed 'net contributors' to the United Kingdom.
Badenoch criticized Labour's approach, stating that the party is "addicted to welfare" and suggesting that Prime Minister Andy Burnham has abandoned tougher proposals to secure political support. This comes after Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood announced exemptions for approximately 300,000 foreign care workers from a planned crackdown that would have extended their wait times for ILR.
Under Labour's adjusted plan, out of 1.9 million foreign nationals expected to be eligible for settlement by 2030, only 500,000 will face extended waiting periods. Badenoch asserted that Conservatives believe permanent settlement and access to benefits should be contingent on an individual being a net contributor to the country. "We need people who are going to contribute to our country, not make us poorer," she stated in a party video.
She outlined a potential Conservative policy: "If someone arrives in this country under those previous rules and they're granted ILR by the Labour government, if they're not a net contributor to our country we will review and stop their indefinite leave to remain." Further details on how 'net contributors' will be defined are expected from the Conservatives.
Badenoch also reiterated broader Conservative immigration principles, including deportation for illegal migrants, a minimum of 10 years for legal residents to obtain ILR, and an additional five years for citizenship. She indicated that citizenship is a privilege that should not come with benefits or social housing for non-citizens, and suggested a higher salary threshold and an annual cap on immigration numbers, emphasizing that "the days of low-skilled mass immigration must come to an end."
The Home Secretary's U-turn on the original plan has drawn scrutiny, particularly regarding its financial implications. Mahmood had previously estimated the cost to taxpayers of not preventing foreign care workers from securing ILR between 2022 and 2024 at £10 billion. She acknowledged that the revised measures would impact the projected savings but stated that a full impact assessment would be released when the immigration rules are presented to Parliament. She confirmed that "billions" in savings would still be realized, though allowing earlier settlement for care workers would affect the overall numbers.