In a blow to Indian techies, the new United Kingdom government has indicated plans to cut down on overseas hiring by technology and engineering companies.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has asked the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) to review the dependence by these sectors on skilled worker visas.
On Wednesday (Aug 7), Cooper wrote to the MAC Chair saying there is a need to understand why key occupations remain heavily dependent on international recruitment.
She was keen to cite information technology and telecommunications professionals as well as engineering professionals among sectors that have been top users of work visas.
“The Government values their skills and the vitality they bring to Britain…The system needs to be managed and controlled,” Cooper said. “The current levels of international recruitment are not sustainable in the longer term and continue to indicate ongoing UK skills shortages,” she added.
The UK home secretary also said that the government wants to bring down migration by implementing an approach that is linked towards policy on skills, leading to a fairer and more coherent approach towards the labour market.
“The system as it exists is not operating in the national interest. This Government will deliver a fair, coherent, more joined-up approach to the labour market by linking immigration with skills policy,” she added.
However, recent Home Office statistics reveal a significant fall in visa applications from students and skilled workers. This comes months after the policy on family dependents tightened.
According to Home Office data, compared with the same period last year, the number of visa applications for main applicants and their dependents in key UK visa categories — skilled worker, health and care, and study — has dipped by a whopping 35 per cent, that is 187,900, between January to July 2024.
A spokesman from the UK Home Office said, “Immigration brings many benefits to the UK, but it must be controlled and delivered through a fair system.”