Labour has been accused of opening up a new legal pathway for millions of refugees to enter the UK under sweeping new measures aimed at fixing Britain's "broken" immigration system.
Keir Starmer has faced attacks from both the left and right since unveiling his latest white paper on immigration on Monday.
The Guardian accused the PM of "reinforcing divisions and xenophobia" by aping the rhetoric of Reform after the insurgent party stormed the local council elections last week.
Some on the right accuse Starmer of not going far enough, while another line of attack is that the Labour leader is opening the door to greater numbers with a "hidden" clause.
The controversial clause in question
Much of the focus has been on measures that expand the Home Office's deportation powers, tighten visa application rules and force applicants to jump through additional hoops before obtaining citizenship.
However, one controversial clause that has received much less attention can be found on page 27 (see below).
The Government is planning to allow refugees - approved by the UNHCR - to move to the UK and work.
Gov.uk
Clause 82, which falls under 'Refugee Employment', states the following: 'Refugees who have had to leave their home country because of persecution often lack the opportunity to apply for jobs and skilled worker visas in the UK, even where they have the talent and training to do so.
'Drawing from the experience of the Displaced Talent Programme, we will explore reforms to allow a limited pool of UNHCR recognised refugees and displaced people living overseas to apply for employment through our existing sponsored worker routes where they have the skills to do so.'
The Government is essentially planning to allow refugees - approved by the UNHCR - to move to the UK and work.
This has sparked furore on the right. Prominent Conservative commentator Connor Tomlinson alleged to his 77k followers on X that "hidden away in the White Paper" is "the prospect of employment while awaiting their asylum decision will act as a further draw for illegal immigrants to pay people smugglers to ferry them across the English Channel".
Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick also piled in on X, tweeting that the "UN recognises 123 million refugees worldwide. A small proportion would still be huge".
The Conservatives released the following statement: "According to the UNHCR, over 120 million people are now forcibly displaced worldwide. This amounts to a new legal pathway for non-UK-based refugees to enter the country. With no definitive cap, this has the potential to allow millions of refugees into the UK. It is an open invitation to the world that Starmer’s Britain is open for all.
"And the data backs it up. Eligibility could be applied to Afghans, who made up 15 per cent of all illegal Channel arrivals last year. Whilst vast swathes of Gaza could be eligible too.
"Keir Starmer says it’s about talent. In reality, it’s about appeasing the activist class who see borders as an inconvenience and nationhood as a relic.
"Rather than getting a grip on illegal working in this country, Labour want to comb the world to get even more refugees to come and work here."
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Keir Starmer has faced attacks from both the left and right since unveiling his latest white paper on immigration
KEIR STARMERIt's important to note that the reform does not automatically offer open access to all 123 million UN-recognised displaced people.
Instead, it proposes allowing a limited number of UNHCR-recognised refugees and displaced persons overseas to apply for UK jobs through existing sponsored worker routes — routes already in place for skilled workers from abroad.
Only refugees with the relevant skills that match UK job shortages would qualify, but critics point out that this could still lead to a substantial surge.
GB News has approached the Home Office for comment.
Insisting that the UK's “one nation experiment in open borders” is over, Keir Starmer claims his new string of policies is both a sustainable and fair way to deal with the surge in immigration numbers over recent years.
