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Key Points

• British businesses are warning the U.K. government that plans to tighten immigration rules on foreign workers will lead to labor shortages and could dent economic growth.
• The British government on Monday announced plans to tighten the rules on who can come to the U.K. to work, study and live.
• Sectors that are traditionally reliant on immigrant workers, such as health and social care, warn the rule changes will exacerbate labor shortages already present in the labor market.

British businesses are warning the U.K. government that plans to tighten immigration rules on foreign workers — and to instead train and recruit more British personnel — will lead to labor shortages in key sectors.

The British government on Monday announced plans to cut migration to the U.K., tightening the rules on who can come to work, study and live in the country.

The proposals raise English-language requirements for migrants, as well as the skills and level of education they need to obtain work visas. The government also said migrant workers would have to live in the U.K. for 10 years in the country before they could apply to stay indefinitely.

The government said its new proposals “back British workers over cheap overseas labour” and would link migration policy with skills to boost economic growth.

But businesses fear that Brits can’t — or won’t — fill the gap created by likely worker and skills shortages, particularly in sectors traditionally heavily-reliant on migrant staff, such as health and social care.

Can Brits fill the gap?

It was already a “struggle” to recruit British workers and was “very, very unusual” to attract home-grown workers into the social care sector, one care home manager in the South of England told CNBC.

“It’s been years, a good couple of years that we haven’t had any British applicants, English applicants,” the care home manager, who could only speak anonymously because of the sensitivity of the matter, told CNBC on Tuesday.

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“I hear lots of things like, you know, Morrison’s [supermarket] pay more, McDonald’s pay more. You hear all those comments out in the community. The pay isn’t great for care, so it is a struggle,” the source said.

“I would say probably 70% of our workforce on the care team are from India. Without those girls, our residents … wouldn’t have had anyone to look after them …What do you put in place [to fill that workforce]? You can’t make people work. You can’t make people look after these residents.”

The government has come under increasing pressure to tackle the thorny issue of immigration amid record migration figures. The strong performance of Nigel Farage’s right wing, anti-immigration Reform UK party in opinion polls and in recent English local elections has increased the need for the government to act quickly, however.

Announcing the plans Monday, Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the strategy “will finally take back control of our borders and close the book on a squalid chapter for our politics, our economy, and our country.”

He added that immigration reforms would end what the government described as the country’s “failed experiment in open borders” that saw migration soar to almost one million a year, noting it would ensure that “people coming here earn the right to stay in the country.”

Migration pressures

The government said in its blueprint on immigration that steep increases in net migration in recent years had been caused by “a big increase in overseas recruitment including a shift towards lower-skilled migration, with a substantial increase in worker visas issued below degree level.”

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For example, it said it had seen a sharp increase in the number of people arriving via the health and social care visa route to work in below degree-level jobs, from 37,000 in 2022 to 108,000 in 2023.

Net migration hit a record high of 906,000 in the year to June 2023, but fell in subsequent twelve months to 728,000, according to the Office for National Statistics.

The government said Monday that it will now “end overseas recruitment for social care visas” although visa extensions would be permitted until 2028.

Care England, which represents independent social care providers, warn that the immigration plans could have “serious consequences for a sector already under immense pressure.” It noted that the care industry currently has 131,000 vacancies.

“Let’s be clear – this decision is not a solution,” Care England’s Chief Executive Martin Green said responding to the government’s plans Monday.

“It is a political gesture that treats the symptoms but ignores the disease. Rather than investing in the sector and solving the recruitment crisis, the Government is closing the door on one of the only workforce pipelines still functioning. Social care is not low-skilled work. It is high-skill, low-pay work that deserves respect, proper recognition, and meaningful investment.”

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Green said, “While concerns around exploitation must be addressed, the proposed solution – ending overseas recruitment entirely – removes a vital workforce supply without establishing a viable domestic alternative.”

‘Home-grown talent’

Business industry leaders say the move to boosting training and skills among British workers is welcome, but warned that labor shortages were likely to become more acute.

“Employers are clear: boosting training in the U.K. is essential, but so is a controlled, affordable and responsive immigration system that keeps investment flowing to the U.K.,” the U.K.’s Recruitment and Employment Confederation Chief Executive Nick Carberry commented Monday.

Businesses will now have to carefully consider the detail of proposals to limit visas for skilled jobs below degree level, the Confederation of British Industry said.

“Labour shortages can’t be solved by training alone. With the U.K.’s workforce set to shrink in the future as our population ages, it’s more important than ever that we support the business investment needed to underpin tech adoption and training,” Rain Newton-Smith, the CBI’s chief executive, noted.

Businesses are keen to unlock more “home-grown talent,” said Jane Gratton, deputy director of policy at the British Chambers of Commerce.

“However, it’s vital that the pace of change in the immigration system does not cut off access to global talent before the U.K.’s wider labour market problems are properly addressed,” Gratton noted.

Firms need access to the right skills to grow the economy, she said, and for some businesses that will include bringing people from outside the U.K.

“This is usually as a last resort when they have tried all they can to recruit from the local labour market,” Gratton said

By Andrew Macaskill and Alistair Smout

LONDON, May 15 (Reuters) - The British government is planning to make some immigrants living in the country wait up to five years longer to qualify for permanent settlement under Prime Minister Keir Starmer's plans to cut immigration numbers. The government announced migration reforms on Monday which would, among other measures, double the amount of time required before a person automatically qualifies for the right to stay in Britain or can apply for citizenship, from five to 10 years.

It had not been immediately clear whether the rule change would apply to those already living in Britain, or for people just moving to the country and due to start the process.

Government officials said on Thursday that while those who arrived on a family visa or as a dependent would retain the five-year route, interior minister Yvette Cooper wanted the longer timeframe to apply to everyone else. One law firm, Farrer&Co, said the change may also not apply to migrants from the European Union who applied for settled status after Brexit, because their treatment was agreed as part of Britain's departure from the bloc in 2020. Advertisement · Scroll to continue Report This Ad

A spokesman for Starmer said that the migration plans would be consulted on before any changes are introduced. Immigration has long been one of the most important issues for voters in Britain. Controlling the number of arrivals was a key factor in the 2016 vote to leave the EU, yet net arrivals hit record levels after it left the bloc, helping to boost Nigel Farage's right-wing, anti-immigration Reform UK party. Starmer, in setting out proposals to reduce immigration, has been heavily criticised by some in his own party and beyond after he warned that Britain risked becoming "an island of strangers" and said immigration had run out of control. His language has drawn parallels to a former right-wing politician Enoch Powell who warned in a now-infamous 1968 "Rivers of Blood" speech that Britons would find themselves "strangers in their own country" - a speech that is widely regarded as one of the most divisive in modern British politics.

Starmer's spokesperson said he completely rejected the comparison, adding that migrants had made a massive contribution to Britain but that numbers needed to be controlled. Some Labour members of parliament have also raised concerns about the possibility of longer qualifying periods applying to people already in Britain. Florence Eshalomi, a Labour member of parliament who chairs the Commons housing, communities and local government committee, said she had been contacted by several constituents, who were working towards getting permanent settlement in Britain. She said one was now considering leaving.

BY Mauricio Alencar

Keir Starmer’s government is reportedly looking to introduce a special visa for foreign investors in an attempt to reverse the tide of millionaires leaving the UK.

Officials are at the early stages of drawing up a visa which would provide an olive branch to wealthy businessmen keen to fund in areas such as artificial intelligence and clean energy, according to a report in Bloomberg. 

The new visa would come as part of a string of immigration reforms aimed at boosting integration and turning the UK into a high-skill, high-wage economy. 

In its white paper unveiled on Monday, the government said overseas businesses would be able to send twice as many workers to the UK as previously. 

Under current rules, a company can send up to five senior employees to work in the UK for three years as part of the Expansion Worker route.

The Labour government also revealed plans to increase the number of people arriving on “very high talent routes” via specialised visas for entrepreneurs and research interns working in artificial intelligence, which could drive up the number of millionaires in the UK.

The white paper said it wished to allow UK firms to compete to attract a “highly prized cohort” of business leaders amid “fierce” competition across the global economy.

This came despite reforms aimed at radically cutting net migration levels from a peak of 900,000 in the year to June 2023. 

Several government departments involved in boosting the economy and curbing immigration agreed attracting talent and influential businessmen was key to UK growth, according to Bloomberg reports.

Read more

CMA handed ‘strategic steer’ as government pushes pro-growth agenda

But the government’s tax regime has come under fire for repelling investors, with a report by the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) suggesting that the removal of tax exemptions for non-domiciled residents could cost the UK government up to £12.2bn in fewer tax receipts due to the departure of wealthy individuals. 

Chancellor Reeves has defended policies targeted at non-doms, claiming that the scheme was unfair and has been replaced with a more “internationally competitive residence-based system” for millionaires. 

Millionaires leaving

City AM revealed last month one of the most high profile business leaders living in London – Goldman Sachs banker Richard Gnodde – was leaving Britain, following the likes of Egyptian billionaire Nassef Sawiris out the exit.

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Milan has emerged as an alternative to London as investors pay a flat tax rate to avoid duties on other earnings while Cyprus President Nikos Christodoulides is set to make a visit to London to trumpet up the country’s softer tax regime on the wealthy. 

Research by the Adam Smith Institute said last month that the UK is expected to lose the greatest proportion of millionaires of any country by 2028. 

It also said that scrapping the non-doms scheme could cost the UK economy more than £100bn in the next ten years. 

Writing for City AM, Labour voter and British billionaire John Caudwelsaid reforms to tax regimes represented bad policymaking. 

“I’ve long called for a better tax system that encourages investment and rewards those who stay and build here. That’s not about giving the wealthy a break, it’s about giving Britain a boost,” Caudwell wrote. 

“The current reforms to the non-dom regime may be politically popular, but they risk sending the wrong signal. We must be a country that welcomes wealth creators and holds them to high standards rather than driving them away.”

By Andrew Chung and John Kruzel

Summary

• Trump order targeted children of certain immigrants
• Three judges issued orders blocking policy nationwide
• Administration challenges nationwide injunctions

WASHINGTON, May 15 (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court is poised on Thursday to consider Donald Trump's attempt to broadly enforce his executive order to limit birthright citizenship, a move that would affect thousands of babies born each year as the Republican president seeks a major shift in how the U.S. Constitution has long been understood.
The justices are scheduled to hear arguments on the administration's emergency request to scale back injunctions issued by federal judges in Maryland, Washington and Massachusetts blocking Trump's directive nationwide. The judges found Trump's order likely violates citizenship language in the U.S. Constitution's 14th Amendment.

BY Damilola Aina

Passengers who boarded an Air Peace Lagos–Abuja flight were thrown into panic on Wednesday following conflicting reports from airline officials over a ‘fault’ that delayed their departure by nearly two hours.

A viral video on social media showed visibly distressed passengers confronting airline staff inside the aircraft, demanding a replacement plane and expressing distrust in the safety of the one they were in at the time.

In the viral video, a passenger aggressively appeals for a flight change, while others chorus their concerns anxiously. Initial information from the cockpit indicated that a technical issue had been detected and was being resolved by engineers.

However, confusion erupted when another cabin crew member later attributed the delay to a minor fault in the Public Address System, stating it had been fixed and that the aircraft was cleared for takeoff.

Passengers, already agitated by the delay, became more unsettled by the contradictory explanations.

A passenger who travelled in the aircraft, Chinwe Okafor, gave an insight about the situation in a Facebook post. “My flight from Lagos to Abuja was scheduled for 1:40 pm. We boarded on time, but shortly after, we were informed of a technical fault,” she stated.

She further noted that “later, someone else told us it was just a microphone issue. Imagine the confusion. First, it was a technical fault. Then, just a microphone. How do you expect people to feel safe with that kind of inconsistency?”

Okafor said passengers were eventually informed that another aircraft would be sent to pick them up, but after close to an additional hour of waiting, the same aircraft was declared airworthy and ready for departure.

Following the latest announcement, Okafor added that several passengers reportedly disembarked, citing safety concerns.

“Some of us stayed behind, summoning enough courage to complete the trip, Risky,” she added

She, however, called for transparency and professionalism, as other passengers demanded clearer communication from the airline in future incidents.

Responding to the incident, Air Peace Corporate Communications Officer, Osifo-Whiskey Efe, confirmed the delay but added that there was no cause for panic.

He said, “It was just a minor issue with the PAS (Public Address System), honestly nothing serious. But because at Air Peace we prioritise safety, we initially considered deploying another aircraft. But the engineer resolved the issue quickly, and there was no safety risk at any time.”

He assured passengers that the airline would never operate a flight if any fault posed a safety concern.

The United States (U.S) Supreme Court is currently hearing arguments on President Donald TrumpPresident Donald Trump’s Executive Order concerning birthright citizenship.

Hundreds of Nigerians who have sought citizenship through that means, could be affected.

The Court is expected to deliver its ruling by the end of June, though a quicker decision remains a possibility.

The Executive Order which took effect upon Trump’s resumption in office in January, seeks to deny citizenship to children born on American soil to parents who are in the country unlawfully or on a temporary basis.

A crucial question underpinning this case is whether judges have the authority to issue nationwide injunctions that would effectively prevent Trump’s executive orders from being enacted.

Within hours of assuming office as the 47th President of the United States, Donald Trump signed a series of executive orders, one of which sparked intense debate and legal challenges.

Immigration advocacy groups swiftly took legal action, with a wave of lawsuits in response to the contentious measure.

It guarantees citizenship to “all persons born or naturalised in the United States,” a clause historically interpreted as conferring automatic citizenship upon nearly all children born on American soil.
Over the years, this broad interpretation has seen many foreign nationals, including Nigerians with sufficient means, choosing to give birth in the US to secure American citizenship for their children.

Government agencies will no longer issue passports, citizenship certificates, or related documents to children born in the U.S whose mothers entered or remained in the country illegally or were on temporary visas.
Children whose fathers are neither U.S citizens nor legal permanent residents will also be excluded from automatic citizenship.

Under the new framework, for a child born in the U.S to qualify as an American citizen, at least one parent must be either a citizen or a green card holder, which is permanent legal residency.

The move marks a dramatic shift in longstanding interpretations of the 14th Amendment, with legal experts predicting an extended courtroom battle over its implications.

Starting June 1, 2025, citizens from five South American countries will be able to enter China without a visa for short stays, marking a significant advancement in the strengthening of ties between China and Latin America.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian, who announced the policy shift, said the move reflects China’s commitment to greater openness and international cooperation.

He added that additional steps will be taken to further ease travel between China and other countries.

Here are the five countries eligible for visa-free entry to China:

1. Argentina

2. Brazil

3. Chile

4. Peru

5. Uruguay

The visa exemption will be in effect from June 1, 2025, to May 31, 2026. During this period, citizens of these countries can stay in China for up to 30 days for purposes such as tourism, business, visiting family or friends, cultural exchange, or transit. 

This new policy reflects China’s ongoing efforts to strengthen its relationship with Latin America, fostering increased travel, trade, and cultural exchange.

BY Tony Diver

Mauritius and Russia have agreed to strengthen their relationship on fishing and “marine research”, raising fresh fears over the UK’s decision to give away the Chagos islands.

Representatives of the two countries met in Port Louis, the Mauritian capital, on Friday and agreed to work more closely together on marine issues.

The talks have alarmed some in the UK, who point out that Mauritius will soon gain control of the Chagos islands, where there is a strategic British-American military base.

Sir Keir Starmer has agreed to sign away sovereignty of the archipelago and lease back Diego Garcia, the largest of the islands, that hosts the base.

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The Government says the deal, which will cost the UK a reported £9 billion over 100 years, will give the military base “security” from legal threats by Mauritius, which has long claimed the islands.

Critics say it will allow Mauritian allies to build listening posts around Diego Garcia, compromising the security of the base.

On Friday concerns were heightened further after a meeting between Oksana Nikolaevna Lut, the Russian agriculture minister, and Arvin Boolell, her Mauritian counterpart.

The Mauritian government said the pair discussed their “commitment to advancing cooperation in agriculture, research, irrigation, and fisheries, and building on a longstanding partnership with a shared focus on sustainable development”.

Mr Boolell also visited a historic Russian sailing ship moored in Mauritius, and described the trip as an “opportunity to deepen collaboration in key sectors, including agriculture, irrigation, and marine research”.

Once the transfer of the Chagos islands is complete, Mauritius will control fishing rights in the area, and be responsible for marine conservation.

It comes after The Telegraph reported a similar meeting between the Mauritian prime minister and the Chinese ambassador on Thursday.

Dame Priti Patel, the shadow foreign secretary, said the close ties between Russia and Mauritius raised fresh concerns about the Chagos deal.

“It is inconceivable that a Government whose first concern and priority has to be the defence of the realm would give away one of the most important strategic and military assets we hold to a country which cosies up to a deal with Russia,” she told The Telegraph.

“We simply cannot afford to gamble in any way with our national security and defence and Mauritius’s collaboration with Russia, a country responsible for a war on European soil, sums up how catastrophic this knee-bending Labour government is.

“Britain’s standing in the world is being crushed by Labour’s disregard of our national interest.”

Ministers insist that the Chagos deal will contain security guarantees that would prevent spying by foreign powers and point to support for the deal by the Trump administration.

The final terms of the agreement, which have not been made public, were expected to be published earlier this month.

But government sources said the announcement had been delayed amid nervousness in Downing Street about how it would be received by MPs.

The Conservatives and Reform UK have both attacked Sir Keir over the deal, claiming it amounts to a “surrender” to international courts.

Downing Street maintains that it will provide “legal certainty” that will allow the military base to continue to operate.

An agreement that would see British travellers able to use e-gates currently reserved for those from the EU or European Economic Area is reportedly close.

BY James Cheng-Morris·Freelance news writer, Yahoo UK

Five years after Brexit, Sir Keir Starmer is set to announce a major new deal with the EU.

It comes as the prime minister will host a major summit with its leaders, including European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and European Council president Antonio Costa, in London on Monday.

Ahead of this, Starmer said the deal would be "another step forwards, with yet more benefits for the UK" and "a strengthened partnership with the EU".

But with talks going "to the wire", what could be included in the deal? Here is what we know so far.

Shorter passport queues for Britons

Cabinet Office minister Nick Thomas-Symonds, who is leading the negotiations on the UK side, has confirmed the government is pushing for measures to speed up the process for British holidaymakers going through passport control in the EU.

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He told Sky News' Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips programme: "I would love to see you being able to go through the border more quickly in that way. That's certainly something we've been pushing with the EU and I think that will be something that will be very helpful to British people."

The Guardian reported negotiators are close to an agreement that would see British travellers able to use e-gates at European airports currently reserved for people from the EU or European Economic Area. Since Brexit, Britons have had to queue at passport control.

Reciprocal youth mobility scheme

In an interview with The Times on Friday, Starmer gave his clearest signal yet that he is open to a youth mobility scheme with the EU in which young Europeans would be allowed to live in the UK for a limited period - and vice versa.

The EU has pushed for a youth mobility scheme, similar to existing arrangements between the UK and countries including Australia and Canada, and the concession could be used to secure British access to a major European defence fund (see next section).

YouGov polling has suggested the policy is supported by more than two-thirds of Britons.

While Starmer, who recently announced major new immigration policies, insisted a youth mobility deal "is not freedom of movement", this has been questioned by opposition parties.

Tory Alex Burghart, shadow chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, told Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips that an uncapped youth mobility scheme with the EU would lead to "much higher immigration", though he added he is waiting to see "what the deal is. Even at this late stage, we don't know... they can't tell us how old a young person is. They can't tell us what benefits they would get."

Labour's Thomas-Symonds said any youth mobility deal with Europe will be "controlled", telling the BBC's Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme: "We have, already, 13 youth mobility schemes with other countries. Nobody is remotely suggesting that that is freedom of movement with those countries - it absolutely isn't."

Access to EU defence fund

Starmer and EU leaders have said they want to see closer defence and security co-operation, and reports have suggested a deal on British access to a £126bn EU defence fund is on the table, in what would be a boost for UK defence companies.

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However, arguments over fishing rights and the youth mobility scheme, outlined above, may provide stumbling blocks to that.

Kaja Kallas, the EU's high representative for foreign affairs, said on Friday that work was progressing on a defence deal but that "we're not there yet".

Chatham House, an international affairs think tank, said the fund is "designed to help member states replenish and modernise their armed forces. A security and defence partnership should enable UK companies to fully access this facility, as similar partnerships do for other countries. It would make sense to bring the UK in, to strengthen the programme and align it with wider European defence efforts."

Recent YouGov polling, commissioned by pro-EU campaign group Best for Britain, has indicated Britons back closer defence ties, with 69% of those polled in favour.

Food and drink exports

The government has been "negotiating very hard" for a deal on food and drink exports with the EU, Thomas-Symonds said.

He told Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg: "This is an area at the moment where the current deal just isn't working.

"We know we've had lorries waiting for 16 hours, fresh food in the back not able to be exported because frankly it's just going off. Red tape, all the certifications that are required: we absolutely want to reduce that."

Speaking to Sky, Thomas-Symonds said he was "confident" a deal can be done that "makes our borders more secure, is good for jobs and growth, and brings people's household bills down".

Asked how much people could expect to save on their shopping if a deal is struck, Thomas-Symonds was unable to give a figure.

In 2024, a record 81,601 immigrants left Canada for their diverse countries in what is described as a ‘reverse japa’ movement—the highest annual total since 2017, according to data from Immigration News Canada.

Simultaneously, the country experienced a significant drop in non-permanent residents such as international students, temporary workers, and asylum seekers, coming into the country, among whom are from Nigeria.

Every province recorded a year-on-year increase in departures, with Ontario emerging as the most affected. Alberta followed with respective outflows of temporary residents by 67 percent and 66 percent.

Nearly half of all emigrants in 2024, 39,430 people, departed from Ontario alone. British Columbia followed with 14,836 exits, marking its highest outward migration in seven years. In contrast, Québec saw only 937 people leave, the lowest figure in ten years.

Causes of emigration from Canada

Rising living costs, a strained housing market, and affordability challenges are cited as key drivers of this trend.

“Ontario’s become a pressure cooker,” one analyst remarked, highlighting the intensifying pressure of soaring rents and unaffordable home prices.

Meanwhile, cities such as Edmonton remain among the most affordable, with average one-bedroom rents around $1,316. Other relatively low-cost markets include St. Catharines, London, Niagara Falls, and Abbotsford.