The UK will need a ‘significant number’ of immigrants to fill job vacancies – Tory MP
On Thursday, new figures will be released showing how many new arrivals there has been into the UK, which is expected to hit 1m people.
Speaking to Kay Burley a few minutes ago, Conservative MP and chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Migration, David Simmons, said the UK needs a lot of new arrivals to fill job vacancies in key sectors, notably the NHS.
Asked why the net migration figure is quite so high, Mr Simmonds attributed it to the pandemic, the war in Ukraine, and China’s crackdown on Hong Kong.
He insisted the UK acted “either in the interests of our own people and our economy, or to help those most in need in the world.”
He said the “vast majority” of those coming to the UK to work go to the NHS and care sectors, which is crucial in the wake of the pandemic.
Mr Simmonds said: “When I hear from businesses in my constituency, the big thing that’s holding them back from growth is the inability to recruit the staff that they need.”
He said we will need a “significant number” of new arrivals to fill those jobs, but also said training and people moving within the UK to where the work is will be key.
Asked directly if we should have more immigration to the UK, he said: “It is both an economic necessity and part of a response which any sensible government would have.”
But, he added, allowing uncontrolled immigration via the English Channel is not the right way to go about it.
Asked Rishi Sunak’s repeated failure to commit to the 2019 Conservative manifesto pledge of reducing net migration below 226,000, Mr Simmonds defended him, saying there have been “unprecedented world events” since that pledge was made.
