Labor crackdown on foreign workers could cost UK economy £710 million

of labor Crackdown on foreign workers Sir Keir Starmer has been warned that the UK economy could lose millions.

There are plans to raise the salary threshold for workers wanting to come to Britain as part of sweeping changes. immigration An independent watchdog has found the numbers would cost between £520-710m as thousands of fewer people contribute to the UK economy.

migration Advisory Committee (MAC), which advises the government immigrationhas recommended that the salary threshold for the skilled worker route remain at £41,700.

The warning comes after then-Home Secretary Yvette Cooper set up a committee in July to examine pay requirements for foreign workers over fears that low-paid people are taking home lower wages than British workers. He stressed that the salary cap “must go up”.

But in its report released on Wednesday, the MAC warned ministers that the UK economy would lose between £520-710m if the threshold were raised to £52,000, and Tory measures to raise salary caps for some businesses were kept in place.

It said the salary range increases for some jobs should be reversed, as they were “an ineffective way of reducing the network”. migration,

Sir Keir unveils tough new immigration In a speech in May, Change claimed the number of people entering the country was causing “incalculable damage”.

The action included proposals to ensure that people coming to the UK on skilled worker visas would need to have a degree-level qualification to apply.

The announced measures also included a ban on recruitment care workers From overseas, English language requirements increased for immigrants Tightening access to skilled worker visas.

The MAC has also raised concerns about the “serious” gap in English proficiency between men and women of some nationalities in the UK. She warned that 30 percent of female migrants from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Türkiye and Syria do not speak English well or at all.

Their research concluded that immigrants with lower levels of English have poorer employment and earnings, and are less engaged in civic life – although local neighborhood engagement and connectedness appear to be unaffected.

Academics also warned that the current status quo of occupation-specific requirements, brought in under the Conservative government in April 2024, was preventing some high earners from working in the UK.

Currently, an IT director earning £85,000 a year will not be eligible for a visa because it is below the average salary for this type of job, the report warns – while a librarian earning £41,700 will be allowed for a visa because it is higher than the average salary for a librarian.

The MAC said this approach “makes little sense” and said it should be scrapped.

Under further radical reforms announced by the Home Secretary Shabana MehmoodMigrants coming to the UK from 2021 will have to live in the UK for at least 10 years to be considered for permanent settlement.

Low-paid workers, such as hundreds of thousands of workers and dependents who have arrived on health and social care visas in recent years, will have to wait 15 years.

However, if migrants are high earners they may have to cut down on waiting time. Those who earn £125,140 in the three years before applying for settlement can reduce the wait to three years, and for anyone earning £50,270 it is reduced to five years.

Independent Is It was previously reported that Labour’s immigration crackdown could cost Britain £4.4 billion. A Home Office impact assessment of the sweeping reforms has predicted that the UK is likely to be worse off by more than £1.2 billion over the next five years – with the possibility that the negative financial impact could be as much as £4.4 billion.

The best-case scenario was that the UK made £800 million through the changes. The assessment considered moves to make it harder for foreign students to stay in the UK and the English language requirement for students on skilled worker visas.

MAC Chair, Professor Brian Bell, said the skilled worker visa route was “vital in enabling migrants to be employed who also make a positive financial contribution to the UK”.

He added: “However, the pay cap is necessary to prevent cuts to the wages of domestic workers and ensure fair pay while maximizing fiscal benefits to the UK. However, the Government has been clear that it will not be used immigration “This system should not be a substitute for training the domestic workforce.”