Visas: Highly Skilled People

Lord Kennedy of Southwark Excerpts

Wednesday 26th November 2025 Lords Chamber

[Lord Boateng (Lab)]

My Lords—

[Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms and Chief Whip (Lord Kennedy of Southwark) (Lab Co-op)]

It is the turn of the Labour Benches.

[Lord Boateng (Lab)]

My Lords, one of the unintended consequences to which the Minister referred is that hard-pressed and hard-working prison officers, who happen to earn less than £41,700 per year, will, as a result of this Government’s policies, find themselves deported when their visas expire. Given the impact that will have on the already strained criminal justice system, will the Minister undertake to ask his colleagues to think again about that policy?

--- Later in debate ---

[Baroness Blackwood of North Oxford (Con)]

My Lords—

[Lord Kennedy of Southwark (Lab Co-op)]

We will hear from the Cross Benches next.

--- Later in debate ---

[Baroness Blackwood of North Oxford (Con)]

My Lords—

[Lord Kennedy of Southwark (Lab Co-op)]

It is the turn of the non-affiliated Benches.

[Lord Austin of Dudley (Non-Afl)]

With 1 million young people not in education, training or work, and with the number of apprenticeships having collapsed in this country, how can it possibly make sense for us to waive the visa rules to bring in roofers, bricklayers, carpenters and care workers, let alone nurses and other NHS workers? These are all highly skilled roles, but we can train young people up to do them quite quickly. Would it not make much more sense to massively increase the number of apprenticeships available for young people who are in this country already?