Labour plan ties settlement to migrants' wider social contributions

Shabana Mahmood, in one of her first major speeches as home secretary at the Labour Party conference in Liverpool on Monday, set out plans to tighten the route to permanent settlement in the United Kingdom by linking indefinite leave to remain to migrants proving a wider social contribution. The proposed conditions include high-standard English language ability, a clean criminal record, evidence of volunteering or community engagement, being in work and paying National Insurance, and not claiming benefits. A consultation on the proposals will be launched later this year.

Under current rules, most migrants can apply for indefinite leave to remain after five years. The government’s immigration White Paper published in May set out a plan to extend that baseline to 10 years, and Mahmood indicated settlement could be earned earlier or later depending on an individual’s contribution or skills. She said the changes aim to strengthen integration and make clear migrants’ contributions beyond employment and taxes. "We need legal migration, it is a good thing," she said, adding that settlement should be "linked not just to the job you are doing, the salary you get, the taxes you pay, but...