London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Sep 18, 2025

Top economist calls for 'lenient' migration rules

Top economist calls for 'lenient' migration rules

It "absolutely makes sense" to be lenient with migration rules when firms face staff shortages, the former chief economist of the Bank of England says.

Andy Haldane told the BBC the UK should be "liberal in our visa policies" to fill skills gaps, and that in turn would help to grow the economy.

It comes after the prime minister said legal migration was too high.

The Home Office said its system allowed in the skills needed while encouraging investment in the domestic workforce.

Mr Haldane's comments come ahead of new figures on net migration to the UK due to be published this Thursday.

While the prime minister has been facing pressure to deliver on a 2019 Conservative manifesto commitment to bring down levels of net migration, some businesses have warned it would damage their industries.

Sectors such as hospitality and retail have been among those facing labour shortages.

Mr Haldane, who sits on the chancellor's council of economic advisers, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme it was important to draw a distinction between "near term and medium term".

He added: "Given the huge shortages in both staff and skills being felt by businesses right across the UK right now - every sector and every region - it absolutely makes sense in the short run that we are lenient in our immigration rules, that we are liberal in our visa policies, in filling those skills gaps to enable the economy to grow, to enable businesses to flourish."

Last week, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak told the BBC legal migration to the UK was "too high" but refused to put a precise figure on acceptable levels of people coming to the UK.

He added he was "considering a range of options" to bring down legal migration.

And earlier in the week, Home Secretary Suella Braverman called for lower immigration, and suggested more British people should be trained to do jobs commonly done by overseas workers, such as lorry driving and fruit picking.

A Home Office spokesperson said: "The public rightly expects us to control immigration, which is why our points-based system delivers for the whole of the UK by prioritising the skills and talent the UK needs, whilst encouraging investment in the domestic workforce."


Industrial strategy


Mr Haldane also said the UK was still some way short of having a fully fledged industrial strategy.

"All around the world now, we see a set of countries engaging in very activist, big budget acts of industrial policy," he said.

"The UK still falls short I think in having such a well-articulated, big budget plan to enable us to compete in what is a global arms race to bring business home."

Mr Haldane added that the UK's strategy felt "quite responsive at the moment".

"Every week appears to bring another event, another impending loss of business," he said.

It comes after one of the world's biggest carmakers warned it may have to close UK factories if the government did not renegotiate the Brexit deal.

Stellantis, which owns Vauxhall, Peugeot, Citroen and Fiat, had committed to making electric cars in the UK, but now says that is under threat.

It warned it could face tariffs of 10% on exports to the EU due to rules on where parts are sourced from.

Mr Haldane said: "Whether it's EVs last week… that doesn't feel like a strategy - and businesses will tell you we're still some way short of having that plan in advance of these events tripping us up."

A Department for Trade spokesperson said: "The government has shown a clear strategy for UK manufacturing with a variety of schemes that ensure sectors from auto, to aerospace, to low-carbon technologies have access to the funding, talent and infrastructure they need.

"We are focusing on providing a competitive business environment to stimulate growth, reducing red-tape and investing millions in new government funding to help manufacturing SMEs increase productivity."

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Macron and his wife to provide 'scientific photographic evidence' that she is a real woman
US Tech Giants Pledge Billions to UK AI Infrastructure Following Starmer's Call
Saudi Arabia cracks down on music ‘lounges’ after conservative backlash
DeepMind and OpenAI Achieve Gold at ‘Coding Olympics’ in AI Milestone
SEC Allows Public Companies to Block Investors from Class-Action Lawsuits
Saudi Arabia Signs ‘Strategic Mutual Defence’ Pact with Pakistan, Marking First Arab State to Gain Indirect Access to Nuclear Strike Capabilities in the Region
Federal Reserve Cuts Rates by Quarter Point and Signals More to Come
Effective and Impressive Generation Z Protest: Images from the Riots in Nepal
European manufacturers against ban on polluting cars: "The industry may collapse"
Sam Altman sells the 'Wedding Estate' in Hawaii for 49 million dollars
Trump: Cancel quarterly company reports and settle for reporting once every six months
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
US Launches New Pilot Program to Accelerate eVTOL Air Taxi Deployment
Christian Brueckner Released from German Prison after Serving Unrelated Sentence
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
Hong Kong Industry Group Calls for HK$20 Billion Support Fund to Ease Property Market Stress
Joe Biden’s Post-Presidency Speaking Fees Face Weak Demand amid Corporate Reluctance
Charlie Kirk's murder will break the left's hateful cancel tactics
Kash Patel erupts at ‘buffoon’ Sen. Adam Schiff over Russiagate: ‘You are the biggest fraud’
Homeland Security says Emmy speech ‘fanning the flames of hatred’ after Einbinder’s ‘F— ICE’ remark
Charlie Kirk’s Alleged Assassin Tyler Robinson Faces Death Penalty as Charges Formally Announced
Actor, director, environmentalist Robert Redford dies at 89
The conservative right spreads westward: a huge achievement for 'Alternative for Germany' in local elections
JD Vance Says There Is “No Unity” with Those Who Celebrate Charlie Kirk’s Killing, and he is right!
Trump sues the 'New York Times' for an astronomical sum of 15 billion dollars
Florida Hospital Welcomes Its Largest-Ever Baby: Annan, Nearly Fourteen Pounds at Birth
U.S. and Britain Poised to Finalize Over $10 Billion in High-Tech, Nuclear and Defense Deals During Trump State Visit
China Finds Nvidia Violated Antitrust Laws in Mellanox Deal, Deepens Trade Tensions with US
US Air Force Begins Modifications on Qatar-Donated Jet Amid Plans to Use It as Air Force One
Pope Leo Warns of Societal Crisis Over Mega-CEO Pay, Citing Tesla’s Proposed Trillion-Dollar Package
Poland Green-Lights NATO Deployment in Response to Major Russian Drone Incursion
Elon Musk Retakes Lead as World’s Richest After Brief Ellison Surge
U.S. and China Agree on Framework to Shift TikTok to American Ownership
London Daily Podcast: London Massive Pro Democracy Rally, Musk Support, UK Economic Data and Premier League Results Mark Eventful Weekend
This Week in AI: Meta’s Superintelligence Push, xAI’s Ten Billion-Dollar Raise, Genesis AI’s Robotics Ambitions, Microsoft Restructuring, Amazon’s Million-Robot Milestone, and Google’s AlphaGenome Update
Le Pen Tightens the Pressure on Macron as France Edges Toward Political Breakdown
Musk calls for new UK government at huge pro-democracy rally in London, but Britons have been brainwashed to obey instead of fighting for their human rights
Elon Musk responds to post calling for the murder of Erika Kirk, widow of Charlie Kirk: 'Either we fight back or they will kill us'
Czech Republic signs €1.34 billion contract for Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks with delivery from 2028
USA: Office Depot Employees Refused to Print Poster in Memory of Charlie Kirk – and Were Fired
Proposed U.S. Bill Would Allow Civil Suits Against Judges Who Release Repeat Violent Offenders
Penske Media Sues Google Over “AI Overviews,” Claiming It Uses Journalism Without Consent and Destroys Traffic
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
French Debt Downgrade Piles Pressure on Macron’s New Prime Minister
US and UK Near Tech, Nuclear and Whisky Deals Ahead of Trump Trip
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
NATO Deploys ‘Eastern Sentry’ After Russian Drones Violate Polish Airspace
Anesthesiologist Left Operation Mid-Surgery to Have Sex with Nurse
×