Promises broken and new records set. And yet, our new Home Secretary shrugs his shoulders and says, “This figure is not showing a significant increase from last year’s figures and is largely in line with our own immigration statistics.”
Eh? What breathtaking nonchalance. In other words, the figures were dire last year and they’re every bit as bad this year. We wonder what Mr. Cleverly’s constituents think about it. Or, indeed, the PM’s in Yorkshire?
The statistics released yesterday (23rd) achieved another record. For the first time ever the two-year total of net migration is over one million. In fact, the 2022 net migration of 606,000 has been revised upwards to 745,000. Who’s to say the latest figure won’t be revised upwards in a few months’ time?
Just to summarise the numbers announced yesterday:
- Net migration in the year ending June 2023 was 672,000.
- Total net migration for the period 2011 to 2021 was revised upwards by a further 745,000.
- The number of work visas rose by 54% to 586,000 (half of which were to dependents!)
- Study visas rose to 643,000.
- Family visas rose by 117% to 82,000.
We put some of this into a chart, take a look here.
All this from a Government that promised us in 2019 that overall migration would fall and in the three preceding elections pledged net migration of tens of thousands. In reality, this: Net migration? Record broken. Work migration? Record broken. Student migration? Record broken. Family migration? Record broken. What champion record breakers we have governing us. If only they were records to be proud of.
This is what Migration Watch said about the news:
These figures are truly shocking. They will result in intolerable pressure on our housing and public services. The Government has abandoned its promises at the last election and has simply caved in to every pro-immigration pressure group. Indeed net migration is now at four or five times the level of three years ago.
If this is allowed to continue, Britain’s population could well soar to about 85 million by 2046. This would be equivalent to 18 new cities the size of Birmingham, and would place an intolerable strain on our land, housing, transportation and public infrastructure.
Apart from the economic pressures brought by this eyewatering net migration figure, how on earth will we integrate the 1.2 million long-term migrants arriving every year? It will only add massively to the problem of integrating the millions of migrants already here.
The British people have been utterly betrayed.
So, what is the Government going to do about it?
Well, after his mouth-dropping opening gambit, our Home Secretary went on to say:
The Government remains completely committed to reducing levels of legal migration while at the same time focusing relentlessly on our priority of stopping the boats.
With respect, Home Secretary, this really makes little sense. But note the attempt to steer the issue onto the Channel.
The fact is, net migration is over 20 times the number currently crossing in dinghies, while legal inflow of 1.2 million to year-ending June is some 45 times bigger.
The Government appears not to have any understanding of what the problem is and won’t even accept that it is a problem, so why should it have an inkling of how to go about solving it? Instead, it gaslights us and attempts to divert attention to the boats (which, for the record, it has also failed to stop).
The British public have had enough of being lied to and treated like fools. If the Government wants to keep its promises and convince us that it means business, it could start by:
- Raising the Skilled Worker salary threshold to £45,000 (as advocated by Suella Braverman)
- Restoring the Resident Labour Market Test that required employers to recruit from settled workers whenever possible
- Removing low skilled occupations from the Skilled Worker visa.
- Capping student migration
- Ending the two-year post-study work visa
- Going back to face-to-face interviews in the applicants’ country.
Alp Mehmet is the Chairman of Migrationwatch U.K. Find Migrationwatch and Alp on X.
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