Theresa May was deluged with calls to take students out of immigration numbers and to scrap her 100,000 target today after she bowed to Cabinet ministers by easing the rules for NHS doctors from overseas.
The Prime Minister’s anti-immigration stance will be eased for the first time tomorrow when doctors and nurses will be taken out of the annual 20,700 cap on Tier 2 visas, letting the health service recruit more non-EU staff to fill posts.
About 6,000 to 8,000 visas earmarked for highly skilled people will be freed up as a result, allowing businesses to bring in specialists that cannot be found in the UK. Mrs May gave way in the face of pressure from new Home Secretary Sajid Javid, Chancellor Philip Hammond, Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt and Business Secretary Greg Clark.
The Evening Standard has led calls to ease rules and ditch the 100,000 cap. Business leaders and universities welcomed the change but called for the scrapping of other anti-immigration rules holding back recruitment.
Mark Hilton, immigration policy director at London First, said: “A wise decision — but it’s time for the Government to accept that arbitrary caps and targets don’t work. We need to hear ideas for a fair and managed immigration system instead of the Government sticking to its net migration target.”
Matthew Fell, CBI chief UK policy director, called the change “a good first move” but added: “A successful migration system should focus on people’s contribution to the UK economy and society, not numbers. Until our immigration system is reformed to reflect this, businesses will continue to struggle.”
Dr Tim Bradshaw, head of the elite Russell Group of universities, said: “Continuing to include students in the net migration target sends the wrong message and is out-of-step with ambitions for a truly global Britain.”
Sources say Mrs May insisted the cap on Tier 2 visas will remain in place. However, it will be less severe thanks to the removal of doctors from the queue. The Home Office declined to comment.
