𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

Sadiq Khan has claimed that millions of foreign nationals who arrived during the so-called “Boris wave” should not have to wait longer for settlement rights. The Mayor of London, who wants Prime Minister Andy Burnham to lead Britain back into the EU, said he was “not in favour of changing rules retrospectively”.

The explosive intervention will be a blow to Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, who has insisted that changing the qualifying period from five years to at least 10 years is essential to prevent a fiscal time bomb. Ms Mahmood claimed it would cost £10billion to support low-wage or unemployed migrants if they are given indefinite leave to remain. Other estimates have suggested the cost will be far higher.

And Sir Sadiq hinted that the Labour Home Secretary will water down her proposals in the coming weeks. He told Today: “I think Shabana Mahmood is absolutely right to have these conversations out in the open.

“She’s right to be expressing her views and to have a consultation. I have responded to the consultation in relation to the opportunities but also the concerns I have.

“I’m somebody who is not in favour of changing rules retrospectively. I’m somebody who recognises we need to control our borders, make sure those who come here contribute, but also we need an immigration policy which is compassionate, and I’m confident that once Shabana has taken on board the responses to the consultation, she will announce a policy that we can all get behind.”

More than 200,000 people have been granted settlement rights – indefinite leave to remain – since Labour vowed to tighten the rules last year. Under Labour’s current plans, migrants will be told to wait at least 10 years before they can apply for settlement rights.

Care workers face being forced to wait 15 years before they can apply for ILR, as immigration chiefs believe the health and social care visa was widely abused. And migrants could be barred from claiming benefits unless they become British citizens.

Some 4.2million migrants moved to the UK between 2021 and 2024. More than 100 Labour MPs, trade unions, health bodies and Left-wing voters are understood to be opposed to Ms Mahmood’s plans.

Splits have even emerged in the Cabinet, with Communities Secretary Angela Rayner against Ms Mahmood’s plans. But Prime Minister Andy Burnham has backed his Home Secretary.

He said: “Why has this problem arisen? It’s arisen because if you look back to the early 2020s – people call it the ‘Boris wave’ – a huge number of people came in seeking permanent settlement on longer-term visas, and that was the change I was pointing to, in relation to freedom of movement and revolving-door migration.

“A new problem has arisen for Britain in terms of how do we handle that form of migration in the long run. And the Home Secretary is right, in my view, to bring forward changes that are based on the principle that settlement is a right to be earned, not just something that is granted automatically. And she’ll set out the final conclusion soon.”