Sir Keir Starmer has accused the Tories of using Brexit to deliberately run an “open borders experiment” in the UK.
The prime minister said the British people are “owed an explanation” after revised figures showed net migration reached a record high of almost one million under the previous government’s watch.
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Data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) shows net migration for the year to June 2023 reached 906,000 – a big jump on what was previously thought and four times higher than pre-Brexit figures in 2019.
In a speech from Downing Street, Sir Keir said: “Failure on this scale isn’t just bad luck. It isn’t a global trend or taking your eye off the ball.
“No, this is a different order of failure. This happened by design, not accident.
“Policies were formed deliberately to liberalise immigration. Brexit was used for that purpose – to turn Britain into a one nation experiment in open borders.”
The ONS’s previous estimate for the year to 2023 was 740,000, which at the time was still a record amount.
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Starmer quizzed over net migration
The stats show net migration – the difference between people coming to live in and leaving the UK – is down 20% this year from the revised high of 2023, standing at an estimated 728,000.
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch yesterday admitted her party, which made repeated pledges to cut net migration by tens of thousands during their 14 years in office, had got immigration “wrong”.
But Sir Keir said their failures were “unforgivable” and can’t be separated from their “refusal to do the hard yards on skills, on welfare reform, on giving our young people opportunities”.
“Clearly the vast majority of people who entered this country did so to plug gaps in our workforce,” he added.
Labour have said they will cut down net migration by banning employers who flout visa rules from hiring overseas staff for two years – double the time of the current sanctions in place.
The crackdown also includes banning companies from passing on visa costs to foreign workers.
Sir Keir’s speech came as Home Secretary Yvette Cooper announced a “landmark” deal with Iraq, intended to crack down on people smuggling and boost border security.
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