Government Town Hall on Immigration Changes
The Home Office has partnered with other government departments, including DWP and the DE to share updates with stakeholders on how it is implementing the government’s policy intentions, outlined in their white paper published on the 6th of June 2025. Chiefly it was confirmed that, whilst a consultation on earned settlement would still be coming later this year, there is currently no planned date.
The government’s outlined position on migration is that it should support, not substitute the British workforce. For instance, the planned increases to the immigration skills charge (ISC) were explained as being for the purpose of raising money which will be put back into schemes to increase the skill level of the UK work force. The government indicated that 8.5 million people in the UK lack basic employable skills and it is their plan to rectify this issue and bring these untapped workers into the wider workforce. It was indicated that this is their priority, instead of making use of migrant workers. The Department for Education also announced that the UK requires 900,000 more skilled individuals to support the British economy by 2030, and that they would be chiefly searching for these individuals domestically, with migration being used only to support roles with high skill levels and where elite talent is required.
The Department for Work and Pensions announced that their plan is to see an employment rate of 80%, though no target date was revealed. New plans are being put in place to see Jobcentre Plus be reformed into a new Jobs and Careers Service, and businesses and employers will be expected to be liaising with their local jobcentres in order to recruit necessary staff.
In addition, it was announced that the Migration Advisory Committee’s role would be expanded and they will now also focus on checking that employers are fostering domestic talent before turning to migrants. It is the government’s plan to replace all medium skilled jobs, which are currently being filled with Migrant workers, with domestic workers. This is reflected in the recent changes to the RQF levels associated with sponsorable occupations.
By :Cameron Dyer
31/10/2025