The 2024 Conservative election campaign strategy appears increasingly clear: to be able to say they cut immigration. Yesterday, Home Secretary James Cleverly stood at the despatch box and announced measures that he suggests will reduce net migration by 300,000. This follows estimates saying levels had peaked at 745,000 in 2022.
Clearly, recent record numbers are unsustainable and place tremendous pressure on public services and housing. As such, moves to increase the skilled worker threshold to £38,700 and scrap so-called “cut-price” labour through changes to the shortage occupations list are sensible.
At the same time, the decision to raise the minimum income for family visas — that is, for UK citizens to bring over a foreign husband, wife or child — to the same figure as for skilled workers is a misguided policy that places an unbearable price on love.
The Government must ensure there is public confidence in our immigration system, one which balances the needs of our businesses and economy with family rights. Yesterday’s announcement was a partial success on that front.
Bring back Erasmus
It would be a simplification to suggest that, having left the European Union, the UK is slowly rejoining one mini-treaty at a time. But on the back of the deal over Horizon, the EU’s €95.5 billion research and innovation programme, we ought next to turn our sights on Erasmus+.
Following Brexit, British students lost the funding available to study abroad, while our universities forwent millions in revenue from EU students studying over here. This was wholly avoidable. Erasmus+ was supposed to be part of the Brexit deal but never made the cut.
The Mayor, Sadiq Khan, has signed a petition launched on Monday by the UK branch of the European Movement, which says the move would be “a vital step in retaining Britain’s standing in the world and upholding the world renown of our universities”. He is right. Young Londoners ought to have the right to choose to study abroad, asprevious generations enjoyed.
Superloop’s super
If the £12.50-a-day Ulez charge is the stick, then Superloop — the suburban bus network created to improve connections and journey times between outer London hot spots — is an important carrot.
Two routes are being added to the system, the SL10 linking Harrow and North Finchley followed shortly by the SL1, connecting North Finchley with Walthamstow Central.
In terms of its city-wide impact, critics of the Superloop point out it will only boost capacity by less than one per cent. But placed on the right routes it can more than punch above its weight.
