London businesses are facing the possibility of being left behind in the global employment market.
This is no small part because the new Labour government has further vowed to lower legal migration by changing the way businesses can hire workers from overseas. Their core message: to focus on local talent instead.
There is no denying that upskilling local talent is a key contributor to economic growth and should be a high priority. But for an ageing population, local talent alone is not enough to address key challenges that are hurting the UK’s quality of life and London’s economic growth right now.Further cuts to labour migration won’t solve talent gaps in critical infrastructure or improve the post-Covid economy — if anything, they’re more likely to further exacerbate existing issues and cause more damage to Britain’s culture as a whole.
In December 2023, the Conservative government introduced a new migration package aimed at cutting legal migration and increasing the minimum salary threshold for skilled workers. This included an increase in the earning threshold for overseas workers from £18,600 to £38,700 and significant changes to the shortage occupation list.
The package will affect London businesses desperately needing to address skills shortages in 2024 — a problem that plagues many key industries, from tech and financial services to healthcare.Gaps for blue collar workers are especially detrimental and while upskilling will take time, businesses are struggling to offer critical services to Londoners right now.
At Localyze, we can already see the legislative impact while working with UK immigration authorities. For example, we have noticed that Sponsor Licence holders are facing an increased wait time for getting Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) allocations approved from the Home Office. We have also seen the Home Office refusing more and more CoS allocations for businesses who are looking to hire foreign nationals from within the UK.
We can only speculate if these delays and refusals are intentional or a consequence of administrative strain, but the result staysmuch the same: the UK — and particularly London —now faces the possibility of being left behind in the global market and failing to offer critical services to its citizens.
It’s early days for the new Labour government, but in August 2024 we’re seeing little change in the rhetoric around labour migration. The government has outlined that it plans to reduce the UK’s reliance on international recruitment, meaning it will become even more challenging for businesses to hire global talent in the future.
As it stands, the Conservative government's controversial five-point plan will remain in place, including salary increases imposed on people seeking skilled worker visas. However, it has come to light that salary requirement increases have paused for individuals wanting partner visas.
Overall, further policy reforms are expected, and employers must remain vigilant and prepare for new rules and requirements regarding international recruitment. This persistent uncertainty stalls their ability to plan and expand operations in a variety of ways, which also slows down hiring of local talent. Suddenly everyone is on the losing side of the immigration topic.
If London businesses are to remain competitive, boost productivity and ultimately build a stronger economy, they need access to skilled workers of every sort — local and global. Beyond just hiring, they also need policies that enable them to retainthe talent they’ve already invested in, which is becoming harder and harder as anti-immigration sentiment rises across the UK.
For a recent example of this, we should look no further than the violent demonstrations in recent weeks. We have team members in London whose sense of safety was wiped away, regardless of their background, putting into question whether they want to continue calling the UK their home.
Our founder’s associate, Karan Shah, shared the following with me on the topic: “As a British Indian whose family has been in London for over 50 years, it was alarming to see a repetition of violent racism, similar to what my father faced in the East End of London in the 1960s. The fear of leaving one's house as a South Asian and any ethnic minority last week was tangible.”
Businesses board up, infrastructure ceases to work, and people are hurt in the aftermath. Open opposition to international talent — of skilled immigration — is not just backwards for businesses, it’s backwards for Britain’s culture, safety and wellbeing. If it hopes to set things right, the new government must acknowledge that its challenges weren’t set about by so-called “uncontrolled migration”, but by misaligned policies set in motion by their predecessors.
Rather than pander to “safe” political discourse that only incites more damage, now is the moment for the UK government to acknowledge that London flourishes only when it remains open to a global workforce with policies that enable businesses to grow, bringing up quality of life with them.
Hanna Asmussen is co-founder and CEO of Localyze.
