There's a pattern emerging with Labour's immigration policy, and it's one that should alarm every British worker concerned about fairness and opportunity. The latest move—granting asylum seekers the right to work in the NHS—is another example of a government that seems determined to put everyone before British citizens. This isn't compassion. This is misguided ideology dressed up as pragmatism.

A Backwards Approach to Immigration Control

Let's be clear about what this policy actually means: while thousands of British nationals struggle to find work, the government is actively creating new employment pathways for people whose immigration status is still being determined. The logic is baffling. If someone's asylum claim hasn't been approved yet, how can they be granted employment rights that should be reserved for citizens and properly approved residents?

Reform UK's position on this is straightforward: immigration control means nothing if it doesn't control immigration. You can't have a proper border policy while simultaneously creating incentives for people to remain in the system indefinitely. By allowing asylum seekers to work, you're removing one of the few incentives for them to have their cases processed quickly and fairly.

The Home Office is already struggling with a backlog of asylum claims stretching into years. Adding employment rights to the mix doesn't solve the problem—it entrenches it. People will have less reason to resolve their status, because they're already integrated into the workforce. This isn't management. This is creating permanent uncertainty.

British Workers Come First—or Should They?

When I speak to constituents in Preston East, particularly those in healthcare sectors, they tell me the same thing: the NHS is at breaking point due to staffing issues, yet these staffing issues are being filled by workers whose immigration status isn't even settled. Why are we not prioritising getting British healthcare workers into these roles?

The government says this is about filling NHS shortages. But if your strategy for solving NHS staffing problems is to employ people whose legal right to be in the country is still in question, you're not solving the problem—you're papering over it while creating new ones. British training places are limited. British nurses and healthcare workers are leaving the profession due to pay and conditions. The answer isn't to replace them with workers who have no long-term commitment to staying in the country.

Reform UK believes in controlled immigration that serves the needs of the country. That means genuine skills shortages should be filled by recruitment abroad when necessary, but with clear pathways and proper vetting. It doesn't mean allowing people to work before their immigration status is confirmed.

A Policy Built on Confusion

What bothers me most about this policy is the fundamental confusion at its heart. The government wants asylum seekers to be self-sufficient and not dependent on state benefits—fair enough. But the way to achieve that isn't to give them access to employment rights before their status is determined. It's to process asylum claims quickly and fairly, then either grant them status (in which case they can work with full rights) or remove them.

Instead, we've created a limbo where people work, integrate into communities, and then claim that removing them would be cruel. We've essentially bound our own hands with bureaucratic tape. This is poor governance dressed up as compassion.

What Reform UK Would Do

Reform UK would create a system where asylum claims are processed within months, not years. We'd ensure that the people who work here have clear legal status. We'd invest in training British workers for NHS roles rather than relying on emergency staffing solutions. And we'd maintain immigration controls that actually control immigration, rather than using employment policy to blur the lines.

The NHS needs staff, absolutely. But British workers need jobs too. A government that can't balance those two things isn't serving the national interest—it's serving an ideology that consistently puts everyone else first.