Immigration takes center stage in debate
As rumors emerge of a split in the Labor Party over immigration, with influential union leader Len McLuskey retaining his longstanding affection for controlled immigration, and shadow ministers urging Jeremy Corbyn to back freedom of movement, Jonathan Ashworth does little to allay fears that Labor are capitulating to the Tories on the issue.
Mr Ashworth, the shadow health and social care secretary, refused to tellSky Newswhether the party wanted immigration to go up or down, but did say the NHS should be allowed to recruit internationally.
But the Tories’ plans came under fire also, with the Confederation British Industry’s director general Carolyn Fairbairn describing their plans to only allow the “brightest and best” into the country as “a worry”.
She said: “If you want to build 200 , 000 houses a year, yuou don t just need the architects and designers, you need the carpenters, electricians, the labourers. We need people to come and help us rebuild our economy. ”
Ms Fairbairn also took aim at Labor, saying the party’s proposed high-cost plans could” crack the foundations of our economy “.
She warned the party needed to ensure it was a friend to business, with many businesses “sitting thinking ‘are we next'”, in the wake of a pledge to nationalize BT.
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