Leader of the UK Conservative Party, Kemi Badenoch, has urged the Labour government to maintain its proposed 10-year residency requirement for immigrants seeking indefinite leave to remain, insisting that temporary work visas should not automatically lead to permanent settlement.
Badenoch made her position known in a post on X on Monday while sharing a letter addressed to the UK Home Secretary. She criticised Labour lawmakers pushing for a softer approach to the government’s planned immigration reforms.
According to her, migrants who enter Britain on temporary work visas should not expect to stay in the country indefinitely simply because they have spent five years there.
The Conservative leader said Labour’s proposal to extend the qualifying period to 10 years was the right move and urged the government not to reverse course.
In the letter, jointly signed with Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp, Badenoch expressed concern over reports that Labour was considering exempting about two million migrants who arrived on work visas between 2021 and the present from the proposed rule.
She described any exemption as a serious mistake, arguing that Britain had previously experienced the consequences of granting permanent residency too quickly.
Badenoch maintained that many migrants currently employed in low-paid and low-skilled jobs could be replaced by economically inactive British citizens if more employment opportunities were created.
She argued that migrants who fail to make what she described as a significant economic contribution over a 10-year period should return to their home countries once their temporary work visas expire.
The Conservative leader also warned that granting indefinite leave to remain after just five years would increase pressure on the UK’s welfare system because successful applicants become eligible for state benefits and can later apply for British citizenship.
According to her, there is currently no legal provision allowing the government to limit welfare entitlements for people granted indefinite leave to remain.
Badenoch insisted that extending the qualifying period from five years to 10 years would not amount to a retrospective policy change, stressing that temporary work visas do not guarantee permanent settlement.
She added that the Conservative Party would support Labour’s original immigration proposals in Parliament if they were introduced without changes, saying the issue was too important to become a political game.
Badenoch said the government’s final decision would show whether Labour was genuinely committed to strengthening border controls and reducing immigration. She also copied the letter to Andy Burnham, whom she referred to as the anticipated incoming Prime Minister, as debate over the UK’s immigration policy continues.
