Prospect welcomes scrapping of £30k migration cap

The government’s decision to scrap the controversial £30,000 migration salary cap has been welcomed by a leading trade union for scientists and specialists who had been campaigning against the policy.

Bectu had argued that the measure would hurt the economy and would affect highly qualified people in sectors such as science, heritage, and the creative industries.

The union argues that this step must be the start of a process of creating an evidence-based immigration system.

Prospect senior deputy general secretary Sue Ferns said:

“The £30,000 salary cap was never based on solid evidence about the UK’s economic success or social integration and if it is finally being scrapped then that is something we welcome.

“Prospect has long argued that many highly skilled people, such as lab assistants, government scientists, or heritage workers earn below the threshold and would have been blocked from coming to the UK. This is despite the essential contribution workers like this make to vital areas of the economy.

“The onus is now on government to step back, drop the dogma and dog-whistling around immigration, and propose an evidence-based system that works for workers and businesses across the UK. It is not yet clear that an Australian-style points-based system is the answer.”