Britain's Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has softened the Home Office's planned settlement rules for migrant social care workers, giving many earlier arrivals a five-year route while keeping changes that apply retroactively to people already in the country.
Care workers who entered the UK ahead of May 2025, with annual pay of £25,000 or more, will now be able to settle after five years. The original version of the UK immigration rules, unveiled last year, would have left many in the sector waiting 15 years.
Even with the concession, roughly 500,000 people will see their road to settlement pushed back. The earlier plan would have affected about 800,000.
The retroactive element survived intact, meaning some migrants who came expecting to qualify after five years may still have to wait longer. Angela Rayner, now housing secretary in Andy Burnham's cabinet, has called that approach un-British and accused the government of moving the goalposts, a complaint she aired again at Labour's conference in September.
Muted response from Labour
When Mahmood presented the package in the House of Commons, most Labour MPs held back. Rachael Maskell, an opponent of the retroactive provisions, pushed hardest, while left-wing figures John McDonnell and Diane Abbott voiced criticism that stopped short of harsh.
The government faced pressure from both sides. Labour MPs representing Brexit-supporting areas wanted Mahmood to hold firm, and some officials worried that retreating would hand ammunition to Reform and the Conservatives.
The decision ranked among the harder calls since Burnham replaced Keir Starmer as prime minister over the summer, a change that revived critics' hopes of forcing the Home Office to back down.
Conservatives allege a U-turn
Conservative shadow home secretary Chris Philp accused Mahmood of a major reversal. He pointed to her own earlier warning that faster settlement for care workers could cost the UK £10bn.
Mahmood declined to put a price on the concession. She also would not say whether the prime minister had personally pressed her to make it.
