Key facts
- TUC General Secretary Paul Nowak warned Prime Minister Andy Burnham against overhauling migration reforms.
- The proposed reforms would require over 300,000 low-paid workers to wait 15 years for legal residency.
- Nowak stated the changes are 'fundamentally unfair' to those who came to the UK with different expectations.
- He highlighted 111,000 staff vacancies in the social care sector.
- Nowak suggested the reforms could fuel far-right sentiment and undermine integration efforts.
- The Home Office stated reforms to double the qualifying period for settlement to 10 years were set out in November.
The general secretary of the Trades Union Congress (TUC), Paul Nowak, has urged Prime Minister Andy Burnham to reconsider proposed migration reforms that would significantly lengthen the time low-paid workers must wait for legal residency in the UK. Speaking ahead of the TUC's annual congress, Nowak described the proposals as 'fundamentally unfair' and warned they could overstretch social care services and fuel far-right sentiment.
Burnham, who became prime minister in July, reappointed Shabana Mahmood as home secretary. Her department is consulting on plans that would require more than 300,000 low-paid workers, including many carers who arrived after the Covid-19 pandemic, to wait 15 years for the right to remain. Nowak argued that changing the rules for individuals who came to the UK with different expectations is unjust.
He highlighted the existing shortage of 111,000 staff in the social care sector, suggesting that while training British workers is important, the UK will still need migrant labor in growing economies with aging populations. Nowak drew a parallel to his own family's history, with both his grandfathers immigrating after World War II, and questioned the feasibility of planning a life in the UK without legal certainty for 10 to 15 years.
While some Labour politicians view the reforms as a way to address public concerns about migration and counter the appeal of populist parties like Reform UK, Nowak suggested the opposite could occur. He argued that such policies could inadvertently empower the far-right by creating a sense of 'otherness' for long-term residents. Nowak also noted that while many TUC members may have voted for Reform UK in recent local elections, evidence suggests the party's appeal is waning.
Nowak proposed that Labour should focus on cost-of-living issues, such as energy bills, to counter populist narratives. He called for a 'social tariff' on energy bills for lower-paid users, funded by a windfall tax on banks, arguing it would help reduce inflation and demonstrate the government is addressing public concerns. A Home Office spokesperson confirmed that reforms to double the standard qualifying period for settlement to 10 years for most migrants were set out in November, and a consultation on elements of these reforms has closed.