Migration Watch report “misfires on all cylinders”, says Property Personnel

The Managing Director of the UK’s oldest estate agent recruitment consultancy has slammed a recent report which claims a cap on skilled migrants does not hamper the ability of British businesses to recruit.

The report by Migration Watch, which campaigns for lower immigration, accuses British businesses of crying wolf over the impact of a cap on Tier 2 work permits, saying that the existing annual limit on workers from outside the EU has never been reached.

Rules introduced by Theresa May when she was home secretary in 2010 limited the entry of skilled migrants from outside the EU to 20,700, all of which required a certificate of sponsorship supporting a visa application. The Migration Watch report says that the number of available certificates has never exceeded this figure – apart from in 2015/16 when 22,037 certificates were issued, but almost 2,800 were returned unused or reclaimed, so again the cap was not reached.

Property Personnel Managing Director Anthony Hesse said: “It’s true to say that the current cap isn’t being breached. But the authors of the Migration Watch study need to ask themselves why. The real reason is that the current restrictions are so high, employers are being prevented from applying in the first place. To use this problem as proof of a cap not hampering companies’ ability to recruit is a criticism which misfires on all cylinders.”

The report goes onto say that since the cap was introduced the monthly limit has been breached just three times out of a total of 69 months. The study says this means some employers have had to wait a month to sponsor a worker, but the overall impact has been “extremely limited”.

Anthony Hesse added: “The present system means that employers have to go through a phenomenal amount of bureaucracy. Visa applications are typically 85 pages long, with employers having to answer over 100 questions about each prospective employee. Then Home Office officials have to consult 1,300 pages of instructions before deciding is a visa will be issued.

“The truth is that we should be easing the path for skilled migrants to help plug the UK skills gap, rather than making their life more difficult. So to claim a cap on numbers does British business no harm is to miss the point entirely.”

Breaking News shared by: Property Publicity – Eric Dixon eric@propertypublicity.co.uk

EAN Content

Content shared by this account is either news shared free by third parties or sponsored (paid for) content from third parties. Please be advised that links to third party websites are not endorsed by Estate Agent Networking - Please do your own research before committing to any third party business promoted on our website.

You May Also Enjoy

Love or Hate Rightmove
Breaking News

Rightmove’s weekly mortgage tracker – 05/02/25

Average rates for 2-year and 5-year fixed-rate mortgages Term Average rate Weekly change Yearly change 2-year fixed 4.98% -0.04% +0.01% 5-year fixed 4.78% -0.03% +0.14% These rates are provided by Podium and are an average based on 95% of the mortgage market. All rates are based on products with a circa £999 fee. Lowest rates…
Read More
Love or Hate Rightmove
Breaking News

February & March are the best months to list a home for sale

February and March are the best months to list a home for sale, based on the likelihood the home goes on to successfully complete, closely followed by April and January Nearly seven in 10 homes (66.3%) listed for sale in February and March since 2012 go on to complete the sale, the joint-highest months of…
Read More
Home and Living

The Cost of Replacing a Wooden Garage Door in Seattle

The replacement of a wooden garage door might be a very expensive affair for homeowners in Seattle. Adding beauty and durability, the wooden garage door installation in Seattle gives a touch of character and worth to your home. The most important factor that is to be kept in mind is the estimation of the cost…
Read More
painting with polycell crack free ceilings
Home and Living

The Benefits of Repainting Your Interiors

Repainting your home’s interior is a simple yet powerful way to refresh and revitalize your living space. Whether you’re looking to update outdated colors, boost your home’s value, or create a more inviting atmosphere, a fresh coat of paint can make a significant difference. In this article, we will explore the numerous benefits of repainting…
Read More
Breaking News

UK house sales up 19% year on year for December

The latest UK monthly property transaction report from the HMRC.   The provisional seasonally adjusted estimate of the number of UK residential transactions in December 2024 is 96,330, 19% higher than December 2023 and 3% higher than November 2024 The provisional non-seasonally adjusted estimate of the number of UK residential transactions in December 2024 is 98,120, 15%…
Read More
Estate Agent Talk

UK House Price Index from Nationwide -Thoughts from the Industry

Commenting on the latest UK House Price Index from Nationwide showing property prices have risen by 4.1%, here are some thoughts from the Industry. Daniel Austin, CEO and co-founder at ASK Partners: “We are continuing to see a rise in house prices, which is hopefully the sign of an upward trend developing going into 2025.…
Read More