By Salma El-Sakka
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood is preparing to water down proposed changes to legal migration rules following strong pushback from across the Labour Party and the cabinet, the BBC reports. Ms Mahmood is expected to announce her final decisions to Parliament next week, scaling back plans that would have forced tens of thousands of social care staff already working in the UK to wait up to 15 years for permanent settlement.
Social Care Workers Exempted from Extended Wait
Under the Home Office's original blueprint, the baseline qualification period for indefinite leave to remain was set to double from five years to 10, with lower-paid foreign workers facing a wait of up to 15 years before securing permanent residency. Following a public consultation that generated more than 200,000 responses, the government is now expected to exempt existing social care workers from the lengthened timetable. Most other foreign workers will still face an extended 10-year residency requirement, though the duration could be reduced for individuals who earn higher incomes or demonstrate sustained contributions to their local communities.
Cabinet Conflict and Political Pressure
Ms Mahmood had pressed for the stricter regime amid growing alarm in Whitehall over the number of legal arrivals approaching eligibility for settlement, following record net migration figures under the previous Conservative administration. The prospect of applying the restrictions retrospectively – moving the goalposts for overseas staff who arrived in Britain on the understanding they could settle after five years – triggered internal conflict. Before rejoining the cabinet as housing secretary, Angela Rayner branded retrospective changes "un-British" for penalising migrants who had moved to the UK in good faith. The Conservative Party framed the reported retreat as a major climbdown, claiming the home secretary had "caved in to pressure from Angela Rayner and her open borders MPs."
Revised Rules to Be Presented to Parliament
Permanent residence – formally designated as indefinite leave to remain – grants foreign nationals the right to live, work, and study in the UK indefinitely, while opening access to public funds and state benefits. The Home Office has been contacted for comment. Ms Mahmood's revised proposals are expected to be laid out before Parliament next week.
