TUC warns proposed UK migration rules could deepen care and political pressures

Trades Union Congress general secretary Paul Nowak has called on UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham to overhaul proposed migration reforms, arguing that longer settlement periods could leave workers in prolonged insecurity and fuel far-right sentiment.

The Home Office has proposed doubling the standard qualifying period for settlement to 10 years for most migrants. Consulted measures could require some low-paid workers, including carers, to wait 15 years, although the final rules have not been announced.

Nowak said changing the expectations of people who arrived under previous rules was fundamentally unfair. He argued that extended uncertainty over legal status could make it harder for migrants to plan their employment, housing and family lives, and undermine integration.

The TUC leader also warned that social care would continue to need overseas workers. He said the sector currently had 111,000 vacancies, despite the need to train more UK residents for those roles.

The proposed changes are partly intended to address public concern about migration and reduce the appeal of populist parties, including Reform UK. Nowak said the approach could instead strengthen far-right sentiment, and argued that delivering improvements on living costs would be a more effective response.

Ahead of the 28 October budget, Nowak called for a social energy tariff for lower-paid households, funded by a windfall tax on banks. The Home Office said its consultation had closed and that the government would respond in due course.