Home Secretary Mahmood Defends Revised Care Worker Migration Rules Amid U‑Turn Claims

Migration reform under fire

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has defended a revised migration reform package that alters the settlement timeline for foreign care workers, insisting the changes will still address the issue of high net migration.

Under the original proposals, lower‑qualified workers who arrived on health and social care visas during the “Boriswave” of 2022 could have been required to wait up to 15 years for permanent settlement.

The updated plan now sets a five‑year wait for foreign care workers who meet their visa conditions and earn at least £25,000 a year. Those who do not qualify for the five‑year route can apply for a new five‑year visa and later seek settlement after that period.

Tensions within the Cabinet emerged when Housing Secretary Angela Rayner publicly criticised the prospect of backdating the plans, and Energy Secretary Miatta Fahnbulleh repeatedly declined to confirm support for extending the qualifying period.

Conservative shadow Chris Philp accused Mahmood of a “U‑turn” and claimed the revision could cost the taxpayer £10 billion. Reform UK leader Nigel Farage described the decision as “the beginning of the capitulation”.

When questioned by the BBC about abandoning efforts to reduce high net migration from the “Boriswave”, Mahmood responded:

“I don’t accept that because, again, when you look at the totality of the changes, around 500,000 people, half a million people who are due to settle at five years will not now settle at five years. They will have to wait longer before they can achieve settlement in this country. And I’ve come to a fair resolution for care workers.”

Under the Home Secretary’s plans, the right to settled status will no longer be automatic and must be earned.

Mahmood’s defence highlights the balancing act between migration control and the needs of the health and social care sector.