World Immigration News

UK's Labour’s Immigration White Paper: Reviewed

Release Date: 2025-11-10
Media: Oxford Law Blogs
Summary: The UK Labour government’s May 2025 immigration white paper proposes stricter controls on migrant workers and students, including raising the skill threshold for work visas, extending the settlement route from five to ten years, curbing overseas recruitment for social care, and increasing compliance requirements for student visas. The paper claims these measures will reduce system “abuse,” protect public services, and restore the domestic labour market.

The analysis argues that these policies continue a long-standing colonial dynamic in which Britain relies on cheap, exploitable labour from formerly colonised countries while depicting migrants as a “problem.” By framing migration as unprecedented and criminal, the white paper obscures Britain’s historical extraction of wealth and labour from the Global South.

The government portrays “low-skilled migration” as the cause of pressure on jobs and public services. However, many of the jobs in question—especially in care work—are low-paid and precarious, which is why they are disproportionately filled by migrants from countries once colonised by Britain. Rather than acknowledging structural exploitation, the white paper blames migrants for labour market failures.

Similarly, while noting exploitation of international students and workers, the white paper faults migrants for “abuse” rather than examining how universities and employers benefit from these arrangements. Tighter restrictions will likely push migrants into informal work, increasing their vulnerability instead of reducing exploitation.

Finally, the language of the white paper frames contemporary migration as a disruption, ignoring the long history of labour mobility shaped by empire. By presenting migrant labour as an economic threat and moral problem, the white paper reinforces racist narratives and shifts attention away from systemic inequality and the ongoing reliance on migrant labour in the UK economy.
Tags: United Kingdom

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