Following the attack in Belfast, Tory MP David Reed went on Newsnight. However, if one is going to try and politicise immigration, do your homework first. If not, this happens.
More homework for David and all the other right-wing cronies:
Most immigrants in the UK are not illegal immigrants for several straightforward reasons:
- They entered the country legally
- The vast majority arrived with visas for work, study, family reunification, or humanitarian protection.
- The UK issues hundreds of thousands of visas every year
- People come through official immigration routes, including skilled worker visas, student visas, family visas, and seasonal worker schemes.
- Many immigrants become permanent residents or citizens
- After living legally in the UK for a number of years, many gain settled status, indefinite leave to remain, or British citizenship.
- International students count as immigrants
- Students attending British universities are included in immigration statistics, but they are legally present under student visas.
- Many immigrants fill labour shortages
- Sectors such as healthcare, social care, construction, agriculture, hospitality, and technology rely heavily on legally recruited overseas workers.
- Refugees and asylum seekers are not illegal immigrants
- Seeking asylum is a legal right under international law. An asylum seeker remains lawfully present while their claim is being considered.
- EU citizens who arrived before Brexit often have legal status
- Millions secured rights to remain through the UK’s EU Settlement Scheme.
- Government figures distinguish between legal and illegal migration
- Official net migration figures primarily measure people moving legally into and out of the country, not illegal immigration.
- Illegal immigrants are a minority of the foreign-born population
- Estimates of the undocumented population are significantly lower than the total number of immigrants living in the UK.
- Most immigrants comply with immigration rules
- They pay visa fees, undergo checks, work legally, study legally, and interact with government systems such as HMRC, the NHS, and local authorities.
Common misconception
People often hear large migration numbers and assume they refer to illegal immigration. In reality, the overwhelming majority of immigration recorded in official UK statistics consists of people using legal routes such as work visas, student visas, family visas, refugee resettlement programmes, and settlement schemes.
In short, while illegal immigration does exist and is a legitimate public policy concern, most immigrants in the UK are living, working, or studying in the country through legal immigration routes.
