{"id":942226,"date":"2026-05-06T19:56:20","date_gmt":"2026-05-06T19:56:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/942226\/"},"modified":"2026-05-06T19:56:20","modified_gmt":"2026-05-06T19:56:20","slug":"opinion-holyrood-2026-election-should-see-parties-look-at-how-immigration-can-benefit-the-highlands-and-scotland","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/942226\/","title":{"rendered":"OPINION: Holyrood 2026 Election should see parties look at how immigration can benefit the Highlands and Scotland"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

In the run-up to the Holyrood elections, reporter Federica Stefani calls for better policies around immigration to allow anyone to make their contribution to the place they live in. In the run-up to polling day, our reporters have been focusing on what they want from our MSPs over the next five years.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"II was surprised and delighted when I realised I could vote in the Scottish Elections.<\/p>\n

I must have had a really puzzled look on my face, the moment I was first told that I could vote for the Scottish Parliament \u2013 despite my utter lack of any form of UK passport or citizenship.<\/p>\n

When I first set foot in Scotland, almost a decade ago, leaving my native Italy behind to pursue my dream to become a journalist (spoiler alert, that turned out well), it wasn\u2019t in my head that the move would become quite this permanent.<\/p>\n

\u00b7 OPINION: \u2018Scotland shouldn\u2019t be an international headline for drugs deaths\u2019<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00b7 OPINION: \u2018Families of children with autism shouldn\u2019t be at the point of crisis before they get the support they need\u2019<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00b7 OPINION: \u2018Transport needs to be affordable, reliable, environmentally sustainable and promised deadlines must be met\u2019<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

But, as it happens, I fell for this amazing place that I now call home, one which has given me so much over the years \u2014 including a voice within the local democratic system.<\/p>\n

Voting is a right \u2013 but also something which I consider a privilege, particularly as I come from a country where non-Italian citizens have extremely limited powers in this aspect. And, although I am currently awaiting a decision on my citizenship application, I can\u2019t vote \u2013 yet \u2013 in the UK parliamentary elections.<\/p>\n

This is one of many aspects of living in Scotland that have made me feel utterly welcome and at home. It\u2019s the people, the culture, the natural beauty. I was lucky to have always been met with warmth and curiosity, rather than suspicion or resentment (but then again, in this sense, I have the privilege coming from being a white European).<\/p>\n

I still recall my first visit to the National Museum of Scotland down in Edinburgh, and the feeling I had when I came across a section dedicated to what was to me a new word and concept: New Scots. And coming across realities like Refuweegee \u2013 the general feeling I had back then was of a country which was overall inviting and welcoming of newcomers, if with its limitations and challenges.<\/p>\n

Things don\u2019t feel quite the same today, for me as for many other people I know. The effects Brexit had were tough on many, however in recent years, the global animosity towards incomers and toxicity in the debate on immigration has been affecting Scotland, and the Highlands as well, even if at a lesser degree than other parts of the UK.<\/p>\n

Although many of these issues come from decisions made in Westminster \u2013 tougher requirements on visas to name one \u2013 this has repercussions locally, and how politicians representing the Highlands and Scotland respond and act upon these policies will be having a local impact as well.<\/p>\n

\"HundredsHundreds of protestors and counter demonstrators turned out in Inverness as tensions over the controversial Cameron Barracks asylum seeker plan rise.<\/p>\n

One example which comes to mind and which stands out from the past months is the debate around the plan to house asylum seekers at Cameron Barracks in Inverness. This is a complex issue which has many layers, but it shows how wider-picture politics can influence our own communities and perceptions. If you are interested in what candidates for the Inverness and Nairn have to say about this, you can find out more here.<\/a><\/p>\n

But in other terms, one huge point is related to staffing of essential services, which are already struggling to cope with current demand, and which find themselves depleted of personnel, also because of the stricter regulations for foreigners from various countries to come and work here.<\/p>\n

So, what is the parties\u2019 stance towards immigration? <\/strong><\/p>\n

\"WhatWhat do parties in Scotland say about immigration?<\/p>\n

In their manifestos, both the SNP and the Scottish Greens are in favour of encouraging more people coming from abroad to live and work in Scotland, and both heavily criticise Westminster\u2019s immigration policies.<\/p>\n

The SNP is calling for the introduction of a Scottish Visa scheme to allow immigration policies to be suited to Scotland\u2019s specific needs, and proposes to introduce a programme based on \u201ckey target business growth sectors\u201d. Their stance on asylum seekers and refugees is also supportive and welcoming of those seeking refuge in Scotland.<\/p>\n

The Scottish Greens would go a step further and seek for immigration powers to be fully devolved to Scotland, in a bid to attract new workers for sectors like healthcare, agriculture, and hospitality, \u201cwhilst providing refuge for those who need our support\u201d, whilst using devolved powers to promote access to essential services also to people coming to Scotland and tackle \u201cdestitution by design\u201d.<\/p>\n

The Scottish Lib Dems manifesto focuses more on the backlog of asylum claims, with proposals to employ 2000 more caseworkers to address it and remove the need for \u201casylum hotels\u201d. They propose to give asylum seekers who have waited more than three months the right to work as well as championing a skills-focused immigration policy in key sectors (mostly Agriculture and fishing) and advocate for a new bespoke customs union between the UK and EU and a new reciprocal youth mobility agreement.<\/p>\n

As far as Scottish Labour is concerned, their manifesto highlights the importance of solidarity and welcoming refugees who are fleeing conflict and persecution. The policies they propose focus on integration \u2013 such as expanding free English language courses for those seeking refuge \u2013 and in helping highly qualified and skilled refugees find work through the \u201cpassporting of skills\u201d.<\/p>\n

The Scottish Conservatives take a stricter stance. They specifically pledge to reinstate the “local connection” rule for housing and homelessness applications to prioritise local people. Additionally, they promise to immediately scrap the scheme that provides free bus travel for asylum seekers, calling it the “wrong priority”.<\/p>\n

Reform UK shares the Conservatives’ desire to restore the “local connection” rule for social housing to prioritise local working-class families over asylum seekers, heavily criticising Glasgow’s status as a dispersal city. They condemn the “sheer speed and scale” of recent immigration (which they refer to as the “Boriswave”). While they state that strangers who adopt \u201cScottish values\u201d are welcome, they are clear that anyone entering the country illegally will be required to leave.<\/p>\n

Look at the people, not the numbers<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"HealthcareHealthcare professionals, social workers, carers – these are just some of the vital roles that people moving to Scotland often cover.<\/p>\n

As I write this, there is one thing that comes to mind, as an illustrative example, of the contribution of immigrants from far and wide to the local community. All I had to do was look at the flatmates I have shared my roof with over the past decade.<\/p>\n

I had two wonderful flatmates from Slovakia \u2014 one is one of the hardest-working and smartest people I have ever met and works in a local care home, the other is so passionate about Scottish Culture and heritage that she is now an incredible champion for it, working in local museums and community storytelling, giving a boost of fresh air to sometimes disregarded institutions.<\/p>\n

My Hungarian flatmate is a psychiatric nurse in a care home for people with dementia \u2013 never have I met someone who had more love for the people she works with than her.<\/p>\n

One flatmate came from Poland and has contributed to the hospitality sector with her skills and tireless work for years \u2013 and she is also involved in cultural projects with young people with a range of disabilities.<\/p>\n

Briefly, I shared the roof with a French guy who came to work as a stonemason, contributing a highly-skilled craft to the local industry.<\/p>\n

Of course, as an Italian, I had a Spanish flatmate \u2013 she also worked in hospitality, but her main goal was to become a support teacher for children with additional needs. She had to return home due to the mixed effects of Brexit and the pandemic.<\/p>\n

These are just the ones I have shared a roof with. A good friend from Brazil has set up a new social enterprise to help disabled people find work. It\u2019s through him I learnt how complex and hostile the visa system can be, the amount of time he was kept in limbo, despite paying large sums of money just to be here.<\/p>\n

My dental hygienist, from India, who was the best one I have ever had, had to leave his job and the country due to the new UK Visa restrictions recently introduced.<\/p>\n

Again, these are just some of the people I have crossed paths with. How many others are out there \u2013 people who are or would have, hands down, been an asset to the Inverness and Highland communities and businesses \u2013 who have had their lives made difficult, or have been proactively forced to leave by the current immigration system in place?<\/p>\n

I personally don\u2019t know anyone who would leave behind their lives \u2013 homes, families and friends \u2013 who would not choose to work and to give their best, if given the opportunity to do so.<\/p>\n

I, in my small capacity, write stories, and hope to be able to give voices to the communities that have welcomed me as one of their own.<\/p>\n

So, when I go to the polls on Thursday, I will keep this in mind.<\/p>\n

Do you want to respond to this article? If so, click here<\/b><\/a> to submit your thoughts and they may be published in print. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"In the run-up to the Holyrood elections, reporter Federica Stefani calls for better policies around immigration to allow…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":942227,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8816],"tags":[748,21529,5554,1102,21530,4884,609,1501,285,712,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-942226","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-edinburgh","8":"tag-britain","9":"tag-columnist","10":"tag-community","11":"tag-edinburgh","12":"tag-give-me-perspective","13":"tag-great-britain","14":"tag-human-interest","15":"tag-latest-news","16":"tag-politics","17":"tag-scotland","18":"tag-uk","19":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/116529396942359379","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/942226","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=942226"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/942226\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/942227"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=942226"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=942226"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=942226"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}