When Rishi Sunak returned Suella Braverman to the Home Secretary on October 25 last year, it was taken as a given. a signal to right-wing parties that he will be tough on migration.
At the heart of her reappointment, allies of the former home secretary said, was a written agreement outlining four key proposals to curb net migration, which official data showed was about to hit a record high of 745,000 people for the year ending December. 2022.
The agreement, seen by the Telegraph, sets out measures to deliver on the Conservatives' 2019 manifesto pledge to reduce overall migration levels from the pre-Brexit level of 239,000. Ms Braverman and her supporters believed the document, although not signed, had been verbally agreed to by Mr Sunak on multiple occasions and witnessed by others.
The agreement helped win the support of Ms Braverman and her supporters in Parliament on the party's right as Mr Sunak sought to consolidate the leadership following the resignation of Liz Truss as prime minister.
Her allies are voicing her demands – followed in six letters to the Prime Minister in 12 months – were ignored, leaving the party criticized for breaking its manifesto commitments. These are exactly the measures Ms. Braverman proposed.
1. Raising the wage threshold for employees
In the agreement seen by The Telegraph, she sought to raise the minimum wage threshold required for foreign skilled workers to obtain a visa from £26,200 a year to £40,000. This will aim to reverse a 150% rise in the number of visas granted to 335,000 foreign workers abroad this year compared to pre-pandemic levels.
So far no changes have occurred. Downing Street is currently considering raising the level, although no decision has been made and there is speculation it is likely to be increased in line with inflation as it has been frozen since its introduction in 2020.It will take her about £30,000, still far short of the £40,000 sought by Ms Braverman and the figure defended on Friday by Boris Johnson, who, as the architect of the points-based immigration system, also admitted that her installation was a “mistake.” as low as it was originally.
The big rise is supported by the right-wing New Conservatives, who are pushing for a rise to £38,000, which they estimate would reduce the number of migrants by 54,000 in year.
Ms Braverman subsequently went further, insisting on £45,000, while Immigration Secretary Robert Jenrick advocates an average salary for British workers of at least £35,000.
However, Professor Brian Bell, chairman of the government's Migration Advisory Committee (MAC), warned that any figure above one for inflation would effectively turn foreign skilled work into graduate employment, turning the clock back to where it was before Mr. Johnson reviewed the policy system.
2. Limit number of dependents
Before May data showed net migration had reached a then-record 606,000, the Prime Minister announced a cap on the number of dependents for graduate students. From January, only graduate students doing research will be allowed to invite relatives, potentially reducing overall net migration by about 150,000.
Mr Sunak called it the “toughest measure” anyone has taken to reduce legal migration levels in a long time, but Ms Braverman wanted him to go further and limit dependents to all visas, especially health and social care. ,where 144,000 workers brought 174,000 spouses or children.
Mr Jenrick, who signed Ms Braverman's latest letter on clean migration in October this year, is pushing for a ban on all dependents of care workers, as well as a cap on all health and welfare visas.
This is understandable. . Steve Barclay, as health secretary, also advocated a block on dependents of care workers, but saw this proposal fail after facing opposition from his own officials and other Whitehall departments.
The issue is now back on the agenda as the option is being considered by Number Ten, although it may not lead to a complete ban and could instead potentially lead to a limit of, for example, one dependent per employee.
Victoria Atkins , the Health Secretary is said to be open to discussions about reducing the number of dependents, but is concerned that any visa cap could harm efforts to clear the NHS waiting list.
3. Cancel visas for graduates
Ms Braverman used a letter to the Prime Minister last November to detail her proposal to scrap the two-year graduate visa, which allows students to stay in the UK for two years after their studies with and without their dependents. any requirements for work.
Instead, she proposed giving them a four-month grace period to stay in the UK after finishing their studies, where they could look for work – and if successful, switch to a work visa. Otherwise they would have to leave. The New Conservative group of MPs believes this will reduce migration by 50,000 people a year.
It is opposed by Number Ten, the Treasury and the Department of Education because it provides universities with an attractive selling point for international students, whose higher fees subsidize the costs of domestic students in the UK, reducing the need for additional government support.
< p>However, Mr. Mrs. Braverman has a supporter in the MAC who opposed its introduction due to concerns that it would act as a “back door” for international students to enter the UK labor market.
Professor Bell said he was concerned that this had led to international students using one-year master's courses to gain two-year access to work in the UK, often in low-skilled roles.
4. “Mickey Mouse” degrees, career shortages and restrictions.
In the agreement, Ms. Braverman outlined her concerns that there has been a “significant increase in the number of international students from developing countries attending non-Russell universities in business studies ” Master's degree with dependents.”
She wanted to “give priority” to specific universities and courses that she felt were sacrificing standards to increase revenue by admitting high-paying international students with lower degrees, often referred to as Mickey Mouse. critics.
In May, Number Ten confirmed it was considering offering “poor quality” degrees but had so far refrained from taking action following warnings from the MAC and universities that it could lead to the bankruptcy of some institutions .
In her letter to the Prime Minister in November 2022, Ms Braverman also called for the abolition of the Shortage Occupational List (SOL), under which companies can hire foreign workers at a rate 20 percent below current if they struggle to fill vacancies. for example?
This has been supported by the MAC, which is concerned that firms are using it to exploit cheap skilled labour, which not only undermines the market but also inhibits the training of domestic workers in the UK. to close the gaps. Labor has promised to scrap it if they win the election.
Number Ten is considering reforming the list but health and social care staff are likely to be excluded. Downing Street is also understood to be skeptical of Ms Braverman's demands (backed by Mr Jenrick) to limit the number of health and care visas due to fears it would impact on shrinking NHS waiting lists.
Ms Braverman also proposed an overall limit on migration, set at a level approved annually by Parliament, similar to the Irregular Migration Act's proposed cap on the number of refugees admitted annually through safe and legal routes. However, such a general limitation is completely excluded.
Braverman's Conservative Party ally said: “The Prime Minister needs to continue delivering on the promises made in the 2019 manifesto, rather than trying to fool people with warm words and vague promises. Suella made it very clear what needed to be done, but he simply ignored her. That's why they didn't like her – because she had political principles.”
In an interview with the Mail on Sunday yesterday, Mr Sunak defended himself against claims that he had broken the “deal”. to implement key policies in return for her support for his leadership bid.
“Of course you talk to people when you're in a leadership election, not just Suella,” Mr Sunak said. Asked if he was worried about her providing evidence of the deal, he replied: “That’s a question for her. I'll get down to business.”
Number Ten said Mr Sunak had made it very clear that he believed migration was too high and needed to be brought down to a more “sustainable” level. A Downing Street spokesman said the numbers were slowing, adding: “We are ready to act and do more.”
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