Original Summary

Getty Images/ AFP via Getty Images Housing Secretary Angela Rayner has said she is concerned about Labour's proposals to change visa rules, which would make it harder for foreign workers to secure permanent residency in the UK. In an interview with the Times ahead of Labour's annual conference, Rayner questioned Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood's plans, saying they are unfair because they "change the goalposts". Under the proposals, most migrants would have to wait 10 years to qualify for residency - instead of the current five - while foreign workers on health and social care visas would face a 15-year wait. Mahmood said the government would make a decision on the immigration overhaul by the end of the year. Speaking to the Times, Rayner said she was concerned about shifting "the goalposts years down the line" for people who arrived in the UK at the beginning of this decade, expecting to secure permanent residence under the current rules. She described the potential rule change as "very disruptive" and added: "I do have concerns about that." During her interview with Times, she said that the changes would impact foreign care workers who "moved their lives here to look after our loved ones". Her remarks represent direct criticism of a policy inherited by Prime Minister Andy Burnham from his predecessor, Sir Keir Starmer. Rayner previously served as deputy prime minister under Sir Keir, and was brought back into cabinet by Burnham in July. It is significant that a serving cabinet minister feels able to criticise an existing government proposal on the eve of Labour's conference, albeit one inherited from the Starmer era. It is part of a growing head of steam from some parts of the party to quash the retrospective elements of these plans. Rayner has previously criticised the measures. In June, she said proposals to retrospectively alter the rules for migrants already working in the UK would be "wrong". Rayner said she believed that Mahmood was aware of her position, telling the Times she has "not changed [her] view" since re-entering the cabinet. Before he became prime minister, Burnham said he "understood" where Rayner was coming from on her criticisms of the migrant visa changes, telling reporters in June that Labour "would do well to listen to what Angela has to say". In recent weeks, trade unions have put pressure on the government to soften its proposals, and a letter to Mahmood jointly-signed by dozens of Labour MPs at the start of the year described the plans as "un-British". Lisa Nandy, secretary of state for culture, media and sport, rejected the "un-British" description of the plans. She told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "I don't think they are un-British because I don't think that we have ever had an automatic right to citizenship for most people who come to the UK from overseas." Nandy said the home secretary was trying to balance respect for people "regardless of who they or where they stand" with the need for "an immigration system that people have confidence in". Asked if Labour could change its mind on the proposal, she told Today: "We always reserve the right to change our minds but we also will reserve the right to stick to our plans if we think we are getting them right". Nandy's comments are a hint the government is reconsidering. She could have given a full-throated defence of the principle of backdating the changes so they apply to those foreign workers already here. But she did not. Instead she emphasised the principle of those "contributing" to the UK and treating them fairly. But if the government does reverse course on applying these changes to those arriving from 2021, the large numbers who came to the UK after that date have a quicker and easier route to settlement. That is a dividing line with the Conservatives and Reform UK that those parties will be keen to highlight. The home secretary faced questions about the changes during an appearance at the Home Affairs Committee earlier this week. Mahmood said she was "very aware that a large group of people who arrived in 2022, absent any change, would qualify in February 2027" for permanent settlement. She added: "Later this year we will set out the new policy on settlement... as well as any transitional arrangements we might decide to implement."

中文概览

中文标题： 雷纳在工党大会前批评签证规则提案

英国住房大臣安吉拉·雷纳在工党年会前表示，担心工党改变签证规则，使外国工人更难获得英国永久居留。提案拟将多数移民获得永居的等待期从五年延长至十年，健康与社会护理签证工人则需等待十五年。雷纳称对早前按现行规则来英的人“改变规则”不公平且具破坏性；内政大臣马哈茂德称将在年底前决定。工党内部及工会对此有压力，部分官员暗示可能重新考虑。

  • 情报分类：综合情报
  • 分类依据：英国签证与永居政策政治争议，属综合时政情报。
  • 信息来源：英语新闻 / BBC News Top Stories
  • 发布时间：2026/9/26 17:47:25