Overview

• Prime Minister Keir Starmer has announced new immigration policies, including a 10-year residency requirement for citizenship, tougher English-language tests, and degree requirements for skilled worker visas.
• Starmer warned that without stricter controls, Britain risks becoming an 'island of strangers,' a statement he defended as necessary to address record-high net migration of 728,000 last year.
• The Prime Minister rejected comparisons of his remarks to Enoch Powell's divisive 'Rivers of Blood' speech, asserting that his approach highlights the positive contributions of migrants.
• Labour MPs Nadia Whittome and John McDonnell criticized Starmer's language as echoing far-right rhetoric, while Interior Minister Yvette Cooper defended the speech as fundamentally different from Powell's.
• Analysts suggest the policies aim to counter rising support for Nigel Farage's Reform UK party, which has gained traction on anti-immigration platforms.