Theresa May’s Brexit curbs on low-skilled immigration under threat as MPs bid to sink it
Home Secretary Sajid Javid was forced to admit details of a post-Brexit visa scheme may not come out until after the Meaningful Vote on December 11
THE GOVERNMENT’s post Brexit immigration plan faces fresh delays as the Cabinet rounds on “isolated” Theresa May, the Sun can reveal.
Home Secretary Sajid Javid was forced to admit details of a post-Brexit visa scheme may not come out until after MPs are asked to vote on the PM’s Brexit deal on December 11.
He said he could only “hope” an Immigration White Paper would be ready - but that a draft was being held up by other Government departments.
The Sun can reveal the delay stems from a bitter Cabinet war over the PM’s bid to halt as much low-skilled immigration as possible.
One Cabinet Minister said the PM was in a “minority of one” as colleagues demand concessions so businesses can continue to recruit low-skilled EU workers.
Sources claim both Chancellor Philip Hammond and Business Secretary Greg Clark are blocking a bid to rush out the paper because they want to soften the proposals.
The PM’s close aides want the paper out before the Meaningful Vote on December 11 in a bid to show Brexit-backing MPs the UK is “taking back control” and ending free movement.
But the Cabinet Minister told The Sun: “The PM is again completely isolated on this.
The Ministers from the big economic departments won’t stand for it as they know how much the nation depends on lower skilled migrants.
“Limiting immigration too much will do more potential damage to the economy than No Deal.”
A Government-backed committee in September called for a ban on any foreign worker who would be earning less than £30,000 a year from obtaining a visa for Brexit Britain.
Speaking to the Home Affairs Select Committee yesterday, Mr Javid said that was “too rigid”.
He refused to be directly drawn on talk of a Cabinet split.
But he also repeatedly refused to back the PM’s target to bring net migration down below 100,000 – a target that hasn’t been met in seven years.
He also insisted that the plan had to be “pro-business” as well as delivering on the results of the 2016 Referendum.
Brussels’ free movement rules were blamed by Leave campaigners for fuelling the explosion in EU migration over the past decade.
Mr Javid insisted Brexit meant that Britain had a golden chance to design its own immigration system.
And he admitted he had originally hoped to publish the Government’s plans in July.
But he said: “I think when I first came into the department I was hoping that things were more ready than they actually were.”
He added: “We are almost there. We have a very good draft.
A number of ministries are looking at it. I know, certainly, that it will be published by the end of the year.”
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One senior Eurosceptic Tory stormed: “The lack of preparedness and incoherence is shown by the fact that at the 11th hour they are having to admit to the utter disarray they are in on immigration.
“They are not going to be taking back control of our borders.”
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