Labour toughens stance as Reform pressure grows
Refugees in the UK will no longer be entitled to apply for permanent residency after five years or automatically bring family members to join them.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer announced the changes ahead of a meeting of the European Political Community in Copenhagen, warning there would be “no golden ticket” to settlement in Britain.
Instead, he said refugees would face a longer route to permanent residency and would have to prove they are contributing to UK society.
“I believe that if you want to come to the UK, you should contribute to our society,” Starmer said.
“Settlement must be earned by contributing to our country, not by paying a people smuggler to cross the Channel in a boat.”
Family reunification scrapped
The decision to end the right to automatic family reunification marks a significant break from policy that has been in place since 2000.
Officials said that while the UK would continue to offer “core protection” to genuine refugees fleeing persecution, rights such as family reunion would no longer be guaranteed.
The move comes as immigration has risen sharply up the political agenda, with Nigel Farage’s Reform UK placing Labour under pressure in the polls.
Reform has pledged to leave the European Convention on Human Rights and end the indefinite leave to remain route for migrants.
Balancing act inside Labour
Starmer has resisted calls to withdraw from the ECHR, instead positioning his government as tightening border and settlement rules while keeping Britain aligned with international obligations.
The announcement follows Labour’s pledge to introduce digital ID for all UK workers by the end of the parliament, a measure designed to curb illegal working.
But the policy has already faced criticism from within the cabinet, with one minister describing it as “no different to the e-visa scheme we already have” and doubting it would be delivered on time.
Home secretary Shabana Mahmood also told Labour’s conference this week that migrants must prove they are “net contributors” to qualify for settlement, requiring a clean criminal record and no history of claiming benefits.
Longer wait for residency
The government has already raised the period before migrants can apply for indefinite leave to remain from five years to 10.
Mahmood clarified that the 10-year threshold could be shortened for those demonstrating a “positive contribution”, such as paying national insurance or volunteering in the community.
Starmer’s latest announcement cements Labour’s harder line, aiming to reassure voters frustrated by small boat crossings while undercutting Reform’s populist appeal.
But with opinion polls showing Reform surging, the political gamble will be whether these measures convince sceptical voters without alienating Labour’s traditional base.
