Isles MP Angus MacNeil has called the UK Government’s latest migration policy cruel and damaging not only to migrants but also to islanders and everyone else in the UK.
From Spring 2024, people wishing to work in the UK will need to earn at least £38,700, an increase of almost 50% from the current minimum salary of £26,200.
The minimum income for those wanting to join British citizens in the UK has risen from 18,600 to £38,700.
This new threshold is above the average salary earned by 70% of UK workers.
Commenting Angus MacNeil MP said:
“This will affect a lot of people, not just migrants working in health and social care, although it is pretty galling for people who come to the UK to help our families when we exclude their families.
“Without the powers of independence our hands are tied on the UK Government’s latest migration policy.
“This is another blow for our islands, and I am hearing from constituents who are very worried about their future.
“We want and need people to come to our islands, but the Home Office does not care about island depopulation.
“This does not need to be the case as the Faroe Islands prove as their population has risen by 6000-7000 in the last 16 years while ours has declined.
“The issue is not geography the issue is our constitutional settlement.
“Government from faraway disinterested London is damaging our islands.”
