UK election 2024: This is where the two main parties stand on immigration

The British people will decide who gets to make the laws and policies to govern their lives when they elect a new government in the parliamentary elections on July 4.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's push for an early general election ignited fierce competition between his Conservative Party and the opposition Labour Party, the latter leading in the opinion polls by double digits.

While both parties aim to attract voters by promising to address issues such as job security and healthcare, one area likely to receive significant attention is their stance on immigration, as outlined in their manifestos released last week.

Stricter border control

The Conservative party has outlined plans to impose additional measures to curb asylum, including continuing with its controversial Rwanda deal.

The Rwanda Plan, which involves sending asylum seekers in the UK to the East African country, has raised concerns about the violation of international humanitarian law and how it undermines human dignity.

However, the party remains committed to the plan, proposing "a regular rhythm of flights every month, starting this July," taking those arriving on small boats across the English Channel to Rwanda.

The Conservative Party intends to implement the Illegal Migration Act that makes it impossible for desperate refugees coming on boats to seek asylum in the UK.

The Labour Party, on the other hand, says it will scrap the Rwanda plan and intends to combat the influx of small boat arrivals by targeting the criminal networks responsible for smuggling the people to the UK.

"We will create a new Border Security Command, with hundreds of new investigators, intelligence officers, and cross-border police officers," the Labour party's manifesto states.

"This will be funded by ending the wasteful Migration and Economic Development partnership with Rwanda."

Like the Conservatives, it intends to implement new measures to clear the country's asylum backlog and end the use of hotels for asylum accommodation.

The Labour Party plans to establish a new unit for returns and enforcement by adding 1,000 staff to expedite the process of deporting people without the right to stay in the UK.

It additionally aims to address the root causes of displacement by working with international partners to tackle humanitarian crises and support refugees in their home regions.

Visas and workforce

The Conservative party wants to implement a firm limit on legal immigration, while Labour pledges to reduce net migration.

According to Labour, the UK has seen a significant increase in reliance on foreign workers to fill skill shortages. So, it wants to reform the current points-based system by imposing visa restrictions and training domestic workers in sectors facing domestic labour shortages.

The UK’s immigration system assigns points to individuals coming to the country for work. Those who meet specific requirements and score enough points are granted visas, allowing employers to recruit skilled foreign workers.

Employers who violate employment law or abuse the visa system will be barred from hiring foreign workers.

Labour says its policy focus is on strengthening the Migration Advisory Committee's role in providing policy guidance.

The Labour Party's manifesto did not address family migration, which includes foreign workers bringing an adult family member to live with them in the UK such as through a spousal visa or applying to bring a parent.

But, the Conservative government, which says, "Immigration is too high," will introduce a binding cap on migration for work and family visas. The cap "will be set at a level that explicitly takes into account the costs and the benefits of migration," and will be progressively reduced each year.

"We will give parliament an annual vote on the level of the cap so that the British people can have confidence that immigration numbers will be controlled," according to the Conservative Party manifesto. "Unlike Labour, we won't allow any form of free movement to return."

So far, the Conservatives have already implemented changes that meant "300,000 people who were eligible to come to the UK last year now couldn't."

It says it stopped immigration from undercutting British workers by increasing the salary threshold for the Skilled Worker Visa by 48 percent to £38,700 ($48,897) and abolished the system in which employers were getting a 20 percent discount if they were short of skilled workers and needed to bring them from abroad.

Based on the manifesto, the Conservative government plans to raise all visa fees by 25 percent, despite the UK already being one of the most expensive countries to get a passport stamped for travel.

It wants to increase the Skilled Worker threshold and Family income requirement "to make sure they don't undercut UK workers.”

According to Conservatives, raising the minimum salary requirement for international workers will decrease immigration to the UK, address the use of low-cost labour, and promote the development of the domestic workforce.

The Conservative party’s manifesto also asks migrants to undergo a health check before travelling to the UK, and plans on raising their Immigration Health Surcharge, "or require them to buy health insurance if they are likely to be a burden on the NHS."

The changes have also impacted international students and care workers, limiting their ability to bring dependents and raising the minimum income for family visas to £38,700.

"We will increase all visa fees and remove the student discount to the Immigration Health Surcharge to raise more money for public services."

Differing stances

During the last UK election in 2019, the main political parties presented varying approaches to immigration policy in their manifestos.

The Labour Party proposed giving EU nationals the right to stay and work in the UK under the EU Settlement Scheme, while the Conservatives said it would continue to grant asylum and support refugees and make efforts to help them return home if it is safe to do so.

This time around, however, both party manifestos appear to favour a more restrictive stance on migration.

Here are the full manifestos for the Labour and Conservative parties.