Britain announced on Thursday that it plans to ease visa access in order to address labour shortages that have been partly caused by tighter post‑Brexit immigration rules. Since leaving the European Union in January 2021, the government has used a points‑based immigration model. “We work… to ensure our points‑based system delivers for the UK and works in the best interests of the economy, by prioritising the skills and talent we need and encouraging long‑term investment in the domestic workforce,” a government spokesperson said. “This includes reviewing the shortage occupation list to ensure it reflects the current labour market.” The shortage list is intended to relax visa requirements for professions that are in short supply.
Many British companies have long called for a more flexible visa policy, especially in hospitality, road haulage and agriculture, sectors that have been hit hard by European labour shortages triggered by Brexit and worsened by the Covid fallout. According to recent data from the Office for National Statistics, the UK now has about one million unfilled jobs. This figure has risen further as more Britons leave the labour market due to long‑term illness or early retirement. The ONS published survey data on Thursday showing that more than a quarter of UK firms with ten or more employees were experiencing shortages in late February, a level broadly unchanged from late January.
“Many businesses will have little option but to increase wages to attract and retain staff,” said Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at stockbroker Hargreaves Lansdown. “This piles on yet more pressure at a time when higher energy costs and rising prices of goods are still causing headaches.” The UK government and the Bank of England have urged employers to show restraint, warning that large pay hikes could jeopardise efforts to tame inflation. Nonetheless, strikes have multiplied in recent months as workers protest salaries that have failed to keep pace with decades‑high consumer‑price inflation, deepening the cost‑of‑living crisis.
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