Legal Migration

Caroline Johnson Excerpts

Monday 4th December 2023 Commons Chamber

[James Cleverly]

I assure my hon. Friend that we will deliver these proposals with alacrity and at pace.

[Dr Caroline Johnson (Sleaford and North Hykeham) (Con)]

My constituents believe migration figures are too high, so I welcome today’s statement and thank the Home Secretary and the Immigration Minister for their hard work to develop the proposals. We heard from the Opposition how some large businesses will bemoan the fact that they no longer have access to cheap labour undercutting the British workforce, but does the Home Secretary agree that raising the threshold to £38,000 means that businesses will need to invest in technology, higher wages and better conditions for the domestic workforce?

[James Cleverly]

To be really profitable, a lot of businesses understand that their best choice is to invest in their own businesses and people. Through the super-deduction policies put forward by my right hon. Friend the Chancellor, we are encouraging businesses to invest in technology to unlock productivity and in the people they employ, because we are committed to a high-wage, high-productivity, high-growth economy.