The government introduced the New Immigration System to attract talented workers to the UK.  They had hoped to open more workers in the industries of construction, hospitality, health, social care, science and research.

Points Based System

Companies can recruit workers based on their qualifications and skills ensuring that they receive the correct pay for that work.  Priti Patel believes that the end of Freedom of Movement has allowed for this change and it is now a system that they can now control who can enter the UK.  Hasn’t this always been the case? Is she saying that she could not introduce a new system before Brexit? Or that the Points Based System did not exist before? Perhaps she is saying they had no control on their own visa system.

Surely, the UK Immigration System has had a Points Based System now for many years and it is the UK Immigration authorities that decide upon applications whether to allow them or refuse them.  Priti Patel states that the end of free movement has boosted wages across the country.  Is that true? Are our nurses being paid more? Are our Carers receiving a decent salary?  It was only recently that the BBC reported a large shortage of carer workers and the low wages they receive does not attract many to this profession.

Priti Patel also states that illegal immigration remains a problem.  However, the large numbers have increased since Brexit not before the end of Free Movement.

Below is what Priti Patel says.

Home Secretary Priti Patel said:

“Our departure from the European Union enabled us to end freedom of movement and introduce a new points-based immigration system to control who can come to our country legally.

One year on, our system is making it easier for businesses to hire the skills and talent they need, while incentivising investment in our domestic workforce, boosting wages across the country.

But illegal migration remains a long-standing problem with the number of small boats crossing the Channel unsafe, unfair and unacceptable. My New Plan for Immigration will reduce the pull factors in our asylum system enabling us to have full control of our immigration system”

Lynne Watson, Vice President of Human Resources, Thales UK said:

“The work we do at Thales, from engineering to manufacturing, is highly skilled and requires us to draw on talent from across the globe to deliver cutting edge technology and products for our customers.

We are very proud of our diverse workforce at Thales and we see our sponsored route visa workers as a strong asset to that. We are pleased that the UK continues to be such an appealing place for so many of our global employees to live and work.”

The Skilled workers route requires each worker to have the skills and qualifications for that particular job as well as a good standard of English.  Each profession and job is set out listing the job description and the relevant pay for that particular post.

The Government hopes in 2022 to introduce further working routes.