Brexit: Social care workers not included in new healthcare visa
The vast majority of social care workers will not be able to get priority access to the UK as a part of a post-Brexit fast track visa for the healthcare sector, the government has confirmed.
The UK’s post-Brexit plans were set out in detail today, confirming that there will be no special exceptions for most workers in the care sector.
There had been recent calls for all social care workers to be eligible for the visa, particularly during the coronavirus lockdown when the “clap for carers” was happening every week.
However, home minister Kevin Foster told MPs today that only senior care workers will be eligible for the visa and that the government wanted more Britons to get jobs in the sector.
“It is right employers would always be looking to recruit from domestic workforce first and ensure they offer terms and conditions, plus development opportunities, that make this possible, especially when we look to support those who have suffered the economic affect of Covid-19 back into work,” he said.
“People will look at what’s happened over the past few months and think that surely the vision for the social care sector is not to carry on looking abroad to recruit at or near the minimum wage, but we need to prioritise jobs here in this country.”
Shadow home secretary Nick Thomas-Symonds accused Boris Johnson of not valuing care workers and cited the need for migrants to fill labour shortages in the industry.
There is an estimated 100,000 social care worker vacancies in England currently.
The Prime Minister’s spokesperson today said the government wanted to “invest more in training and development for care workers in this country”.
They added: “On care workers specifically, our independent migration advisers have said immigration is not the sole answer here, which is why we have provided councils with an additional £1.5bn of funding for social care in 2021-22, as well as launching a new recruitment campaign.”
The government’s 130-page post-Brexit immigration document, released today, confirmed many of the already announced features of the new system.
The new immigration system abolishes freedom of movement with the EU for unskilled migrants in favour of a new system that awards points to applicants that speak English, have skilled job offers, and meet minimum salary requirements.
In a written statement, Patel said: “At a time where an increased number of people across the UK are looking for work, the new points-based system will encourage employers to invest in the domestic UK workforce, rather than simply relying on labour from abroad.”