We must wean economy off immigration, Labour leader warns businesses - BBC

The days of "cheap labour" indispensable extremity to wean the UK disconnected its "immigration dependency", Labour person Sir Keir Starmer has told concern leaders.

Sir Keir called for a program to bid British workers and determination the system distant from its "low-pay model".

But helium accepted the request for skilled overseas workers and promised a "pragmatic" attack to immigration.

His code comes astatine a clip erstwhile businesses are calling for much migrant labour to boost economical growth.

The Labour leader's code to the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) league successful Birmingham followed that of Prime Minister Rishi Sunak connected Monday.

Mr Sunak told concern leaders having "proper power of our borders" was 1 of the contiguous benefits of Brexit and said curbing amerciable migration was the "country's fig 1 precedence close now".

He spoke aft CBI director-general Tony Danker said the UK needed much overseas workers to thrust economical maturation arsenic the state faces a heavy recession.

"People are arguing against migration - but it's the lone happening that has accrued our maturation imaginable since March," Mr Danker said.

There was considerably little migration during the Covid-19 pandemic than successful erstwhile years and the fig of EU citizens moving to the UK has dropped since the UK near the European Union.

The Office for Budget Responsibility has forecasted a diminution successful nett migration, with the fig expected to settee astatine 205,000 a twelvemonth from 2026 onwards.

In his speech, Sir Keir acceptable retired what the UK's migration argumentation would look similar nether a Labour government, should the enactment triumph the adjacent wide election.

He promised an migration strategy that works amended for the needs of concern and recognises the request for skilled workers from abroad.

But helium stressed that immoderate changes to a points-based migration strategy "will travel with caller conditions for business".

"We volition expect you to bring guardant a wide program for higher skills and much training, for amended wage and conditions, for concern successful caller technology," helium said.

"But our communal extremity indispensable beryllium to assistance the British system disconnected its migration dependency. To commencement investing much successful grooming up workers who are already here."

Pressed connected whether helium wanted nett migration to decrease, Sir Keir said helium expected numbers to autumn successful areas that person been "overly reliant" connected workers from abroad.

However, helium added that helium didn't privation to clasp businesses backmost if they request to employment endowment from abroad.

Sir Keir besides said helium would tackle NHS waiting lists and amended intelligence wellness enactment successful bid to assistance radical get backmost into work.

"You can't archer maine the fig of older radical falling retired of enactment has thing to bash with the millions stuck connected NHS waiting lists," helium told the conference.

Since the pandemic, 1 cardinal people, mostly successful their 50s, person near enactment making it harder for employers to find staff.

Sir Keir outlined Labour's plans for betterment including:

Asked if his ain enactment supported the policies, Sir Keir said Labour had "changed" adding: "We've turned Labour wrong out."

Labour's person appears to person a genuine content that this is the champion mode to physique sustainable economical growth.

Keir Starmer believes, we are told, that determination needs to beryllium a cardinal rethink that involves grooming the home workforce alternatively than relying connected immigration.

But determination is simply a governmental calculation too.

Sir Keir wants to transportation the aged Labour heartlands which voted for Brexit that helium understands immoderate of the concerns astir precocious levels of immigration.

He besides wants to effort and person them helium is superior astir making Brexit enactment - without state of movement.

But not everyone successful the Labour Party volition hold with the code oregon the substance of his speech.

The emergence of ineligible migration to the UK was 1 of the astir salient governmental issues successful the state up of the EU referendum successful 2016.

Former Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron erstwhile promised to get migration down to the tens of thousands a year.

Net migration - the quality betwixt radical coming to the UK and those leaving - has been implicit 200,000 since the precocious 1990s.

Under Sir Keir's leadership, Labour has ruled retired a instrumentality to the EU azygous market, which guarantees citizens of subordinate states the state to unrecorded and enactment anyplace successful the bloc.

Labour's argumentation connected Brexit has divided the party, with immoderate calling for a overmuch person narration with the EU connected antithetic terms.

Sir Keir's code comes arsenic Mr Sunak denied that ministers could look to realign the UK with EU laws.

Some Tories person been angered by suggestions the authorities was weighing up a Swiss-style narration with the EU.

But the premier curate told the CBI league connected Monday that the UK "will not prosecute immoderate narration with Europe that relies connected alignment with EU laws".