Lincolnshire care boss warns immigration overhaul could worsen staffing crisis
Proposed “earned settlement” rules could lengthen wait to stay in UK and damage morale, says Care Association chair
The chair of the Lincolnshire Care Association says the Government’s proposed immigration overhaul could drive valued care workers out of the UK - deepening staff shortages and creating more pressure on the NHS.
Melanie Weatherly told us she is “really, really disappointed about the way that the care sector workforce has been singled out” in the Home Office’s new “earned settlement” plans.
“Earned settlement” – what’s being proposed?
Under the Government’s proposals, migrant care workers would no longer qualify for settlement after five years.
Instead, they would follow a much longer “earned settlement” route – potentially 10 to 15 years – and would need to meet new conditions, including:
- Being continuously in work
- Making a set level of National Insurance contributions
- Not claiming benefits
- Learning English to a “high standard”
- Having a “spotless” criminal record
- Demonstrating community contribution, for example through volunteering
The Government says this model will “reward contribution” while reducing net migration.
“People in the UK don’t want these jobs”
Weatherly is blunt about the challenges of employing UK workers.
“People say, why can’t we just get people from the UK? Because they don’t want to do the jobs.”
“Our international colleagues bring their compassion and their skill and are very happy to support our older people and people with disabilities.
"Sadly, that's not often the case in the UK. That's something we need to change, but we're not going to be able to change it overnight.
“This is going to discourage some of our existing workforce from staying with us.”
“If they choose to go elsewhere, we’ll be back to where we were… There will be a shortage of care which will have an immediate knock-on effect in the NHS.”
Some, Melanie says, feel misled by the rule changes:
“We attracted these people here on the understanding they’d be able to apply to stay. It feels as though they came under false pretences.”
A Home Office spokesperson said:
“We are grateful to our overseas frontline healthcare workers, who bring compassion, deliver high-quality care and strengthen our health service, but net migration must come down.
“As the Home Secretary has set out, under our proposed new settlement model, individuals will have the opportunity to reduce the qualifying period to settlement and citizenship based on contributions to the UK economy and society.
“We have launched the consultation and encourage health and care workers to take part.”