Why Kemi Badenoch thinks migrants should wait 10 years for UK citizenship

Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch has made a blistering call for a complete overhaul of Britain’s immigration system, targeting both legal and illegal migration.

In a strongly worded op-ed published in the Daily Mail UK, Badenoch demanded a sweeping crackdown, accusing the Labour Government of protecting rule-breakers and punishing hard-working British citizens.

“The issue of immigration is a simple one for the Conservative Party: we need to crack down on it in every form, both legal and illegal,” she wrote.

Badenoch accused the current system of rewarding those who “jump the queue, who break the rules, who get into our country illegally but then denigrate our customs and our culture.”

In contrast, she argued that law-abiding, tax-paying British citizens are the ones who suffer and bear the financial burden.

“Those of us who work hard and do the right thing… are left footing the bill,” Badenoch asserted, branding the situation as deeply unjust.

She blasted what she sees as a hidden flaw in the current immigration policy: the provision of indefinite leave to remain for low-income migrants and refugees after just five years of residence.

This status, she explained, gives non-citizens full access to British welfare benefits, including Universal Credit and social housing — regardless of their employment history or contributions to the tax system.

“To my mind, that is fundamentally unfair to all the hard-working Brits who have dutifully paid into the system – and I’m determined to stop it,” Badenoch declared.

In her fiery piece, Badenoch took direct aim at the Labour Government, accusing it of blocking critical reforms that would have reshaped immigration and welfare laws.

She pointed to Labour’s rejection of the Conservative-backed Deportation Bill, which she described as a missed opportunity to restore fairness and protect national sovereignty.

The bill proposed multiple strict measures:

• Capping the number of new arrivals annually.
• Doubling the benefit waiting period for migrants from five to ten years.
• Preventing benefit claimants from gaining indefinite leave to remain.
• Extending the ten-year residency rule for British citizenship applications.
• Empowering the Home Office to revoke settled status from any migrant convicted of a crime.

“All in all, that Bill was designed to protect our borders and uphold fairness in our benefits system. But thanks to Labour, it was shot down,” Badenoch wrote.

She criticised Labour MPs for what she called a “deliberate and reckless refusal to put British citizens first.”

According to Badenoch, the current system favours those who manipulate loopholes, abuse hospitality, and contribute little or nothing to the national economy.

Her statement marks a sharp turn toward hardline immigration rhetoric, as she vows to bring sweeping policy changes if Conservatives regain full legislative control.

Badenoch’s article reflects growing tension in British politics over immigration, national identity, and welfare access amid rising public concern about border control.

Her message is clear: the status quo is broken, and the Conservative Party under her leadership will not tolerate a system that, in her view, punishes patriotism and rewards exploitation.

As general elections draw closer, immigration is poised to become one of the defining issues — and Badenoch appears ready to stake her political future on it.

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