Andy Burnham is considering watering down plans to implement the Home Secretary’s hardline immigration reforms, according to allies.
Under Shabana Mahmood’s plans, the time it takes for most migrant workers to qualify for permanent residence will be doubled from five years to 10 and will be applied retrospectively.
That means those who are already in the country might have to wait longer for permanent residency than they expected when they arrived in the UK.
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The benefits headache ahead for Burnham – and what he can learn from Germany
Andy Burnham after his swearing-in as an MP on Monday. Labour MPs hope his charisma can help sell any welfare reforms that are needed (Photo: Dan Kitwood/Getty)
Andy Burnham faces hugely difficult decisions on the size of the military and the welfare state if he replaces Keir Starmer as prime minister.
What Britain could learn from its close ally
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz during a press conference in Berlin on 9 April (Photo: RALF HIRSCHBERGER / AFP via Getty Images)
Germany is embarking on major benefit cuts while ramping up defence expenditure to levels unseen since the Second World War.
As it navigates these twin spending headaches, Britain’s close ally could offer some valuable lessons to Team Burnham if they make it to Downing Street.
Germany’s ‘painful’ new austerity cuts as it faces €172bn (£148bn) black hole
A new “basic security benefit” with much harsher work requirements could reduce welfare spending by billions of euros annually.
In a bid to save €20bn a year, a plan to remove German citizens’ free health insurance coverage for non-contributing spouses was set out in April.
Payments for medicines and hospital stays will also rise.
Germany’s statutory pension insurance – the equivalent of the UK state pension – will be cut back to provide only “basic cover”.
How will Burnham cut welfare bill?
Burnham insisted he is “not squeamish” about the need to reduce the welfare bill during his Makerfield by-election campaign, but ruled out “crude” short-term cuts.
Burnham is also under pressure from some Labour MPs to end the UK’s “unsustainable” triple lock state pension promise. Alan Milburn’s youth unemployment review looks set to recommend changes to PIP so it is tied to job searches for the first time.
Big Read
4 min read
Explained
4 min read
Labour MPs hope Burnham’s charisma can help him sell reforms
[Burnham] would face the same challenge [as Chancellor Friedrich Merz]. Insurgent parties on both the left and the right are poised to capitalise on any unpopular measures he may be forced to implement
Professor John Ryan, expert in EU politics
Caption: ASHTON IN MAKERFIELD, ENGLAND – JUNE 10: Reform UK Leader Nigel Farage speaks at a press conference for the Reform candidate Robert Kenyon ahead of the Makerfield by-election on June 10, 2026 in Ashton in Makerfield, England. Local plumber and gas engineer Robert Kenyon is the official Reform UK candidate contesting the Makerfield by-election on 18 June 2026. He is the primary challenger to the Labour Party candidate, Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham. (Photo by Ryan Jenkinson/Getty Images)
Photographer: Ryan Jenkinson
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Source: Getty Images Europe
Copyright: Ryan Jenkinson
A closer look at the detail
In Germany, a special fund of more than €500bn (£431bn) should raise defence spending to 3.5 per cent of GDP by the end of the decade. A special exemption to Germany’s normal “debt brake” rules was created for this extra borrowing and spending – the equivalent of Labour’s “fiscal rules”.
Caption: Military Working Dog (Patrol Combat Support Dog) on Exercise Spring Storm in Estonia. The British military have shown off their dogs of war in a major combat rehearsal within 25km of the Russian border. The 1st Military Working Dog Regiment, a specialist unit of the British Army under the Royal Army Veterinary Corps, joined wargames during Exercise Spring Storm. The event in May also saw some 1,500 British troops from 4 Brigade deploy to Estonia to conduct realistic battlefield training alongside other NATO member states and partners.
Photo released 02/06/2026
Photographer: / SWNS
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Caption: Newly elected Makerfield MP and former Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham arrives at Derby Gate by the Houses of Parliament, following Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s announcement of the timeline for his resignation, in London, Britain, June 22, 2026. REUTERS/Jack Taylor TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY
Photographer: Jack Taylor
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Burnham appears to back greater spending on Britain’s military and he has previously suggested that fiscal rules could be changed to allow extra spending – just like in Germany.
Peter Murrell jailed for five years over £400k SNP embezzlement
The SNP’s former chief executive and Nicola Sturgeon’s estranged husband, Peter Murrell, has been sentenced to more than five years in prison for embezzling £400,000 from the party.
Caption: Peter Murrell arrives in a prison van at Edinburgh High Court for sentencing. The former SNP chief executive Peter Murrell admitted embezzling more than ?400,000 from his party over a 12-year period. Picture date: Tuesday June 23, 2026. PA Photo. Photo credit should read: Jane Barlow/PA Wire
Photographer: Jane Barlow
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Source: PA
What you need to know
Sentencing, Lord Young told Murrell he had committed a “calculated crime of dishonesty”, with a “large number of fraudulent acts over a 12 year period while you were chief executive officer of the SNP”.
The revelations about Nicola Sturgeon’s recently estranged husband Peter Murrell are mind-boggling (Photo: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)
Peter Murrell, former SNP chief executive and husband of ex-first minister Nicola Sturgeon, (Photo: Robert Perry/PA)
He added: “You found yourself unable to stop this offending, and it was only the detection of the crime that brought it to an end.”
What did Murrell use funds to buy?
A robotic lawnmower purchased for £3,070 was misdescribed as “legal fees” in the SNP’s accounting software.
A silver wine coaster worth £3,500 was described as “leadership expenses”.
In 2017, Murrell purchased two Bremond World Timer Alt 1 watches for a total of £9,350.55.
A £125,000 motorhome was purchased with SNP funds, and was then only driven for four miles.
A closer look at the detail
Sturgeon has said through her lawyer that she is “innocent of any crime”, while hitting out at “anonymous sources” which have tried to “insinuate guilt” on her part.
Sturgeon was arrested and questioned as part of the police investigation into the SNP’s finances, which was known as Operation Branchform, but Police Scotland confirmed she would face no action.
Explained
5 min read
SCOTLAND
4 min read
Murrell has the cash to repay the embezzled money, said his lawyer
Caption: Undated handout photo issued by Crown Office of the motorhome purchased by
Peter Murrell that was shown during a hearing at the High Court in Edinburgh, following his admission that he embezzled more than ?400,000 from the SNP. Issue date: Tuesday June 02, 2026. PA Photo. Photo credit should read: Crown Office/PA Wire
NOTE TO EDITORS: This handout photo may only be used for editorial reporting purposes for the contemporaneous illustration of events, things or the people in the image or facts mentioned in the caption. Reuse of the picture may require further permission from the copyright holder.
Photographer: Crown Office
Provider: Crown Office/PA Wire
Source: PA
The court was told that Murrell wanted to repay the money as a way to make a start toward atoning for his crimes – and that the 61-year-old had sufficient funds to repay the money he embezzled.
There will be a proceeds of crime hearing on 14 September in Edinburgh aimed at working out exactly how much Murrell should pay back.
OPINION
3 min read
What motivated the crimes?
Often, there are psychological gains, such as feeling powerful or the excitement of getting away with it. Given that Murrell’s wife held a position of great power, his offending might have been a psychological attempt to address a potential power imbalance within the relationship.
Dr RUTH TULLY, CONSULTANT FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGIST
A police vehicle drives away from the home of Peter Murrell, former chief executive of the Scottish National Party (SNP), and his wife, Scotland’s former First Minister and former leader of the SNP, Nicola Sturgeon. (Photo: ANDY BUCHANAN / AFP)
A woman uses a shopping bag to provide shade during the hot weather near the Tower of London on 15 August (Photo: Yui Mok/PA Wire)
The temperature records set to be broken in UK this week
Significant records could be broken
35.6°C
The highest June temperature on record.
It was set on 29 June, 1957, at Camden Square in London, then equalled on 28 June, 1976, at Mayflower Park in Southampton.
40.3°C
The highest temperature ever recorded in the UK.
The figure was reached on 19 July, 2022, at Coningsby in Lincolnshire.
The UK’s highest temperature recorded in the whole of 2025 could also be exceeded
35.8°C was reached on 1 July, 2025, at Faversham in Kent.
Caption: TOPSHOT – An aerial picture shows people playing in the sea and relaxing in the sunshine on Bournemouth beach on the south coast of England on May 26, 2026, as heatwave conditions spread to parts of southeast England and London. Britain registered on Tuesday its hottest-ever May temperature on record, with the mercury rising to 35C near the capital. (Photo by JUSTIN TALLIS / AFP via Getty Images)
Photographer: JUSTIN TALLIS
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Source: AFP
Copyright: AFP or licensors
Explained
4 min read
The impact of the extreme heat
Hundreds of schools, including in the South, East Midlands, and Wales have announced closures
South Western Railway, Avanti West Coast and Chiltern Railways are among the train companies running reduced services
Currys has seen sales of fans up 3,000 per cent and air conditioning sales up 330 per cent.
Heavy rain has caused flooding, disrupting Heathrow services on the Elizabeth Line.
Climate change intensifies ‘heat dome’
Temperatures are expected to smash the June record set in 1976 by several degrees as human-driven climate change intensifies the impact of a “heat dome” settling over Western Europe.
Caption: Tube passengers pass underneath hot weather health advice messages on LED screens outside the Canary Wharf Underground Station in London, Britain, May 26, 2026. REUTERS/Suzanne Plunkett
Photographer: Suzanne Plunkett
Provider: REUTERS
Source: REUTERS
A man cools down with a bottle of water during the hot weather at Westminster Bridge, central London (Photo: James Manning/PA)
Overnight, the temperature did not dip below 20°C at nine locations across England, recording what the Met Office terms a tropical night.
‘London isn’t just calling. It’s cooking’
Crisis brings clarity and here in London – the city of Dickens – it is clear that our world is facing a ‘tale of two crises’. A climate crisis is pushing us deeper towards higher temperatures and closer to catastrophic tipping points, and an energy crisis exposing the folly of a world hooked on hydrocarbons.
AntÓnio GuterreS, UN SEcretary-GENERAL
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres holds a press conference about the escalating war between the US/Israel and Iran at the United Nations Headquarters on 14 (Photo: John Lamparski/Getty)
The Midlife MOT is open to all and covers three key areas: work, wealth and well-being (Photo: Westend61/Getty)
Feeling insecure at work
in your 50s? You’re not alone
The final decades of work
There’s this assumption about being put out to pasture… but now that we’re living and working longer, we have to challenge myths around ageing and remember that over-50s are a crucial part of the workforce…
LYNDSEY SIMPSON, AUTHOR OF AGE REBELLION AND FOUNDER OF 55/REDEFINED
The current situation
By 2030, almost half of all employees in the UK workforce will be over 50.
36%
Now one in three workers are over 50.
Yet more than a third of those between 50 and 69 believe that their age puts them at a disadvantage when they apply for jobs.
37%
The Age Without Limits study from 2024 shows that 37 per cent of workers between 51 to 70 felt badly treated in work because of their age.
The things to do, says Simpson
More and more people are using AI for counselling (Photo: Oscar Wong/Getty/Moment RF)
Keep learning new skills
We need the same level of career planning in
our fifties as our twenties. It’s possible to reinvent yourself again.
Embrace technology
It’s nonsense that older people can’t pick up how to use new tech.
Caption: John?r Bildbyr? AB
+46 8 644 83 30
www.johner.se
info@johner.se
sales@johner.se
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Caption: This is a photo of a woman clutching a pink piggy bank labelled pension. See PA Feature FINANCE Pension Pots. WARNING: This picture must only be used to accompany PA Feature FINANCE Pension Pots. PA Photo. Photo credit should read: Alamy/PA
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Think about money
Do you need a pay rise? Could you trade some of that money you earn, to work a bit less, and do more things you enjoy?
The things not to do
Become full-time childcare
Grandparenting on the horizon? If you don’t want to do childcare, have the conversation early – even before a child becomes pregnant – that you plan to continue working and love your job.
Caption: Indoor image of thoughtful puzzled senior woman with gray hair in glasses looking at paycheck holding head in hand, upset with high rent charge, sitting at kitchen table in front of laptop
Photographer: shurkin_son
Provider: Getty Images
Source: iStockphoto
Grandparents and granddaughter gardening together – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
Accept redundancy too quickly
It’s going to be so much harder to get back into work if you don’t have a plan before you take that leap.
The things not to do
Rush into retirement
Senior bed woman problem pain headache home elderly mature pain bedroom upset unhappy female caucasian adult relationship retirement old difficulty ache head sick migraine hangover sleep – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
Everybody thinks early retirement is the dream but the reality can be different. There can be loneliness, lack of purpose and a sense of invisibility.
LIFESTYLE
5 min read
By November, UK food prices will be 50 per cent higher than they were at the start of the cost-of-living crisis
With that in mind, food editor Sophie Morris shares how she saves money on her weekly shop
Easy ways to save on the weekly shop
Caption: NORTHWICH, ENGLAND – JULY 06: Whole chicken sit on display in a Tesco supermarket on July 06, 2022 in Northwich, England. The British Retail Consortium recently said food manufacturers and supermarkets are having to pass on some of the cost of soaring raw materials to consumers, leading to the price of basic goods throughout the UK rising at the fastest pace since September 2008. Fresh food prices increased by 6% in the year to June 2022 coupled with an increase in inflation, and fuel and energy prices to create a cost of living crisis. This is leading to millions of low-income households going without essentials items, falling behind on bills and taking on debt. (Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)
Photographer: Christopher Furlong
Provider: Getty Images
Source: Getty Images Europe
Avoid chicken breast
Boneless chicken thighs are all meat and a much tastier product.
Don’t plan everything
If you plan every meal all week, there’s no leeway for necessary last-minute changes of plan (or leftovers).
Man Cooking By Woman Chopping Carrots In Kitchen – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
Governments are not all powerful when it comes to huge international forces like those increasing global food prices (Photo: Oscar Wong/Getty Images/Moment RF)
Shop alone
There are so many products that children want to fill the trolley with – all kinds of exciting eye candy. It’s cheaper to go alone.
Easy ways to save on the weekly shop
Consider a vegetable box delivery
Having a Riverford box delivery helps Morris avoid impulse buys and go to the shops
less – even though the box is pricey. “It is expensive, but of great quality and organic”.
Milk and potatoes prices are expected to increases sharply later this year, say supply chain experts (Photo: Kate Wieser/Getty)
Low carb, FODMAP diet food background with vegetables, fruits, smoked salmon, chicken fillet, greens, nuts, olives. Menu for healthy eating . – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
Track your spending
It doesn’t need to be an elaborate spreadsheet but without some kind of metric, it’s impossible to spot where you
can or must make cutbacks.
Easy ways to save on the weekly shop
The supermarket loyalty schemes vary in their generosity (Photo: Paul Childs/Reuters)
Look for yellow stickers
You can save plenty
over a year by never buying branded products at full price.
Take stock
Do a quick cupboard stocktake. You might find you already have three jars of one thing.
Mid-Adult Couple Calculating Their Finances On The Laptop In The Kitchen – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
“Soft restrictions” aren’t infallible; we can always make the effort to get a ladder and get the biscuit tin down from the highest shelf (Photo: Getty)
Avoid packaged snacks
Packing fruit, biscuits, and nuts etc into a Tupperware to take out is more cost effective than buying tiny packaged portions.
Easy ways to save on the weekly shop
Be wary of DIY treats
“Faking” a takeaway at home can sound like a cheaper option, but if it’s something you don’t usually cook – that needs new ingredients – it could work out pricier.
Whatever you buy, buy British if you can. That will help boost fishermen’s finances (Photo: Betty Laura Zapata/Getty)
Caption: A customer looks at packages of chilled chicken cuts in a part-empty refrigerated display unit at a Lidl supermarket store in Walthamstow, west London, on September 21, 2021. (Photo by Tolga Akmen / AFP) (Photo by TOLGA AKMEN/AFP via Getty Images)
Photographer: TOLGA AKMEN
Provider: AFP via Getty Images
Source: AFP
Copyright: AFP or licensors
Do you need it now?
Returning a few things to the shelves that you won’t need in the near future can save you a healthy amount.
Skip a shop
Every time you make do with what’s at home,
you save big.
Supermarkets will find ways of holding down the price of the basics, and try to make their money on the fancy lines (Photo: Roy James Shakespeare/Getty)
Easy ways to save on
the weekly shop
Try a week or a month of shopping local,
and you might be surprised at the results,
in terms of cost and other benefits like supporting local businesses, and
avoiding car journeys and traffic.
Defenders of the triple Lock point to the fact pensioners are often asset-rich and income-poor. (Photo: Getty)
Go shopping when you’re not in a huge rush so you can make relaxed and informed decisions. Don’t expect to stick to your plan or make great choices when you’re in a hurry.
I’ve been a cleaner for 30 years – these are the 10 products I swear by
Rebecca Jones has tried most cleaning products in her
decades-long career.
She shares the ones she can’t
live without.
The 10 best cleaning products
Best vacuum
Henry is a classic.
It has fantastic filters, sucks up pet hair quickly, and is great at cleaning up fine dust.
Best mop and bucket
The Vileda H2PrO set is light, manoeuvrable and keeps clean and dirty water separate.
A reader has asked whether or not she should sack her cleaner because she isn’t doing a good job anymore (Photo: stock image of a man cleaning a window via Getty Images)
Best glass cleaner
The HG Glass and
Mirror cleaner removes stains without leaving smudges or streaks.
The 10 best cleaning products
Best multipurpose cleaner
Method’s multi-surface cleaner is plant-based, cruelty-free, and works great on grease, sinks, sealed wood surfaces, hobs, bins and sealed laminated floors.
Deep cleaning glass door handles for Covid-19 disease prevention. alcohol,disinfectant spray on Wipes of Banister in home for safety,infection of Covid-19 virus,contamination, germs – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
Best toilet brush
Unlike a regular toilet brush, nothing gets stuck in the bristles of Ibergrif M34152 Silicone brush. It also dries quickly, so
there’s less odour.
The 10 best cleaning products
Best mould remover
Jones uses the HG Mould Spray on walls, tiles, grout, windows and outdoor furniture.
(Photo: boonchai wedmakawand/Getty/Moment RF)
Best cloths
The Seep Eco Bamboo clothes have a streak-free finish and last.
Best carpet cleaner
Every home should have a bottle of Dr Beckmann’s stain remover, says Jones.
Caption: Dr Beckmann Power Brush Stain Remover
Image from https://www.dr-beckmann.co.uk/products/pre-wash-stain-devils/
The 10 best cleaning products
Best stain remover
The Mr Siga Multi-Functional Eraser Sponge acts like fine sandpaper to lift
dirt, stains, and scuffs using only water.
(Photo: Viktoriya Skorikova/Getty Images/Moment RF)
Best kept secret
Jones uses Bar Keepers Friend Cleanser to polish stainless-steel, scour sinks and clean her fridge and cookware.
Around 957,000 people aged 16 to 24 are classed as NEET ie. not in Education, Employment or Training
But as youth unemployment rises, not all companies
are looking to universities to find their new recruits. Meet the people who have benefitted.
Poorer graduates will be hit hardest by the changes, the National Union of Students says (Photo: Andrew Fox/Getty/Image Bank)
For young people unable to attend uni
My whole life was being a carer, so I was very lost…
From the age of around 10, Bruce Devlin took responsibility for everything at home – from administering his mother’s medication, to doing the shopping, cooking, cleaning and supporting his mother’s mental health.
He scraped through school, leaving with the lowest grades.
Now, aged 26, he has secured a job by pursuing an unconventional route.
The charities helping them
Bruce followed an unconventional route.
Getting a foot in the door seemed impossible with his qualifications, lack of experience and connections.
His Job Centre work coach put him in touch with Generation, a non-profit which partners with companies to identify roles which they are struggling to fill.
He landed a place on Generation’s first IT support boot camp and benefited from CV and interview coaching.
Bruce is now a level three senior quality engineer with 2i Testing, a company which tests other companies’ software.
The result
Getting a full-time salary and being a contributing member of society is an amazing achievement. Without this, I’d be just another person on jobseeker’s allowance, wasting any potential I had.
BRUCE DEVLIN, 26, GLASGOW
The apprenticeship route
Jessica Andrea Carvalho had an offer to start a media and marketing degree but she rejected it at the last minute to avoid huge debt and years of classroom learning.
Avoiding increasing
NEET numbers
Young woman at her first job interview with the owner of a coffee shop – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
Generation placed 700 people
like Bruce in jobs last year.
The number of placements has jumped 20 per cent from last year.
42 per cent of their learners come from the UK’s most deprived areas.
Big Read
10 min read
Plan 5 applies to students who began university courses on or after August 2023
(Photo: Abraham Gonzalez Fernandez/Getty Images/
Source: Moment RF)
What do employers think?
Creating more routes in is not just about opportunity – it helps bring in talent with different experiences.
Paula Cunnington, the chief talent officer for Publicis Groupe UK, a network of marketing agencies that has hired 79 apprentices, says curiosity and real-world experience are far better indicators of future success.
Up to 75 per cent of us in the UK are not drinking enough water.
The human body can survive for a time without food, but it cannot survive for long without water.
Here are the signs you need more fluids, according to a GP.
How much we should drink
Water is the most vital component for life.
6-8
NHS guidelines advise we should be drinking six to eight glasses of fluid per day.
This does vary depending on our activity levels, the weather, and if we are ill.
80%
An estimated 50-80 per cent of our bodies and brains being made up of water.
It allows us to deliver nutrients to cells in our blood, lubricates our joints, regulates our temperature and much more.
How to stay hydrated
What to drink
Not all fluids are the same – water takes top spot, as it hydrates without sugars or calories, but lower-fat milks, sugar-free drinks or moderate amounts of tea and coffee can all count towards fluid intake.
Caption: Asian girl grocery shopping in supermarket. She is choosing fresh fruit juice along the beverage aisle, reading the nutrition label and checking ingredients on the bottle. Making a healthier food choice and balanced diet. Healthy eating lifestyle
Photographer: d3sign
Provider: Getty Images
Source: Moment RF
A reader bemoans that his children spend money on fancy coffees and holidays with friends, never having a penny left each month
(Photo: Getty/Gorica Poturak)
What to avoid
Limit smoothies and fruit juices to 150ml per day because the sugar causes dental decay.
Signs you’re not drinking enough
1. Our brains
The pain from migraines is sometimes described as feeling like you’ve had an axe blow to the head (Photo: Getty)
When dehydrated, we can display an exaggerated response to pain and experience headaches. Concentration, attention, reaction times and short-term memory can also all be negatively impacted.
LIFESTYLE
6 min read
Signs you’re not drinking enough
2. Our bodies
Another common sign of dehydration is constipation. Our skin can look duller, be less bouncy to the touch and be less elastic.
Tired Asian businesswoman working on a laptop computer in the office – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
(Photo: Ekaterina Demidova/Getty).
3. Our psychology
Research has shown that even mild dehydration can lead us to feel more moody, stressed and irritable. We can also feel more tired than usual, with less energy and motivation.
Mahmood insists the changes to the law, which are expected to be introduced in the autumn, are necessary because of the “historically large numbers” that arrived since 2021, dubbed the “Boriswave” by Reform UK.
Rayner among Labour MPs to oppose policy
However, Mahmood’s proposals have led to a furious backlash from some Labour MPs. Among the opponents are Angela Rayner, the former deputy prime minister, who said in March that it would be “un-British” to apply the changes retrospectively.
Rayner said there were people who now “fear for their future” due to the prospect of the Government “moving the goalposts”.
She argued that changing the rules would “pull the rug” from under people who came to Britain on the understanding they could stay if they worked where they were needed, obeyed the law, and paid their taxes.
“That would be not just bad policy but a breach of trust. The people already in the system, who made a huge investment, now fear for their future; they do not have stability and do not know what will happen,” Rayner added.
Burnham’s allies say he shares her concerns and is looking again at the proposal to impose the changes retrospectively. “He sees it as a matter of fairness and will not want to impose the changes retrospectively,” said one source who is familiar with the discussions.
A source close to Burnham described the claim as “speculation” and said he was “yet to make a decision”.
Migration will be a key test for Burnham if he becomes prime minister. The failure to stem small boats – even though Mahmood’s reforms concern legal migration – is considered among the reasons Reform UK are polling so well.
Although Burnham’s by-election campaign in Makerfield – where immigration was one of the key issues – is understood to have shifted his views on the Home Secretary’s reforms, he has criticised them previously.
He said last year that doubling the time it takes for migrants to qualify for indefinite leave to remain would leave people “in a sense of limbo and unable to integrate”.
However, in the days after his by-election victory, he said he backed the “broad thrust” of her reforms – but he also appeared to suggest there could be some changes to ease the impact on foreign nationals who have been in the UK for several years.
With many Labour MPs critical of Mahmood’s reforms, Burnham will need to look tough on migration while not alienating the party he has just united.
Revolt against reforms
The current Government is consulting on the reforms and reviewing more than 200,000 responses.
Downing Street has previously refused to rule out the measures being watered down in response to the consultation, following a backbench revolt against the changes earlier in the year.
In February, more than 100 MPs, peers and union leaders demanded Mahmood pause her reforms amid fears they would hit key sectors such as social care, pushing it “closer to breaking point”.
Mahmood’s allies have not ruled out the measures being watered down.
A Home Office spokesman said: “We will always welcome those that come to this country and contribute to our national life. But the privilege of living here forever should be earned, not automatic.
“But between 2021 and 2024, this country experienced levels of migration it had historically seen over four decades. We must be honest about the scale and impact of hundreds of thousands of low-skilled migrants getting settlement.
“The Government will double the route to settlement from five to 10 years. As announced in November, we are consulting to apply this change to those in the UK today but have not received settled status. We are currently reviewing the 200,000 responses and will outline our response in due course.”