UK to announce 'discriminatory' visa change for people from 3 nations

Yvette Cooper will next week announce restrictions on people from Pakistan, Nigeria and Sri Lanka who come to work or study in the UK.

The Home Secretary is set to single out countries whose nationals are most likely to make asylum applications when their visa comes to an end. Campaigners have warned the move would be "unfair" and "discriminatory" if introduced.

The measure is set to be included in a long-awaited white paper which will spell out how plans to bring down legal migration. Experts believe the number affected would be "quite small".

The Government says the controversial move would "tackle abuse by foreign nationals who arrive on work and study visas and go on to claim asylum". But Enver Solomon, chief executive of the Refugee Council, said that people who put in asylum applications in this situation must be given a fair hearing.

He said some may find their lives at risk because the political situation in their homeland changes while they are in the UK. Mr Solomon said: "To restrict access to seeking asylum based on a person’s nationality would not only be unfair but also discriminatory."

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Net migration - the number of people arriving in the UK minus those leaving - was 728,000 in the year to June 2024, down from 906,.000 a year earlier. The Government has steadfastly refused to put a net migration target - with saying he will not bring in an "arbitrary cap".

Prof Jonathan Portes, from think tank UK in a Changing Europe, told the BBC's Today Programme: "I think the impact here is not designed primarily to be about numbers overall, it's designed to be about reducing asylum claims which are perceived to be abusive."

A Home Office spokesman said: "To tackle we are building intelligence on the profile of these individuals to identify them earlier and faster. We keep the visa system under constant review and where we detect trends, which may undermine our immigration rules, we will not hesitate to take action. Under our plan for change, our upcoming Immigration White Paper will set out a comprehensive plan to restore order to our broken immigration system."

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