The Conservatives will reduce “immigration overall” to the UK after Brexit if they win the general election according to Priti Patel but they are set to scrap their pledge to cut it to the tens of thousands.
Ms Patel made the promise as she launched an attack on what she claimed was Labour’s “open borders” policy.
But shadow business minister Laura Pidcock said the Conservatives had “broken every single commitment they’ve ever given” on immigration.
She also called targets to reduce immigration “arbitrary” and said the “real issue” was “exploitative bosses” bringing down wages.
Ms Patel did not spell out in detail how she planned to cut immigration. The Conservatives say they will end free movement from the EU on 1 January 2021, if they win the election and get their Brexit deal through by 31 January.
The party is planning a “points-based” system, based on skills and other factors, which would apply to EU and non-EU migrants.
However, the party is expected to ditch its longstanding commitment to cut net migration – the difference between the number of people entering and leaving the country – to below 100,000, after repeatedly failing to meet it. This would mean a continuation of mass immigration into the UK.
Last week, Home Office Minister Victoria Atkins repeatedly declined to say whether immigration would be higher or lower under a future Tory government, in a BBC Radio 4 Today programme interview.
This comes as the Tories have been criticised after it was revealed that there may be more than 1.2 million illegal immigrants in the UK with the numbers continuing to soar.
Lead Correspondent | David Clews is the Lead Correspondent for UNN, with over 20 years of political/campaigning experience and a wealth of social media and communication skills David gets to the heart of what is really important to the real people of the UK.
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