Indefinite Leave to Remain

Mark Pritchard Excerpts

Monday 8th September 2025 Westminster Hall

[Peter Swallow (Bracknell) (Lab)]

It is a honour to serve under your chairship, Mr Pritchard. I welcome the Minister to his place. By way of ingratiating myself on behalf of my constituents, may I also say how much I like his socks, which I have been admiring?

The immigration White Paper rightly recognises that we need an immigration system that is fair, firm and clear. Those who have come to this country to work hard, contribute and play by the rules should be able to see a well-defined route to citizenship. That pathway must be bound by rules that are consistent, transparent and well understood.

That said, I have heard from Bracknell constituents who will potentially be affected by a shift from a five-plus-one year route to a 10-plus-one year route to citizenship. Many of those residents are almost at the five-year point today, and have already built lives and careers here. Understandably, they are worried that just as they reach that threshold, the rules will change beneath their feet. My firm view is that when people come to this country on the basis of a clear settlement route, we should respect that understanding, and that, at the very least, any change should be introduced in a staggered way. That is the fair and right thing to do.

Importantly, this moment provides us with the opportunity to properly re-examine the individual components of our immigration system, including the BNO visa scheme. When the Conservatives launched it, the scheme was billed as a bespoke pathway that honoured our historical obligations to the people of Hong Kong. In reality, however, far too many BNO holders have found themselves bound by the same rules as other visa holders. That is not what was promised, and it does not reflect our historic commitment and the unique circumstances that brought Hongkongers to our country. Here I am afraid I disagree with my hon. Friend the Member for Edinburgh East and Musselburgh (Chris Murray): the route by which people come to this country does matter.

The Hong Kong community is making a remarkable contribution to Britain. A 2023 survey found that 99% of BNO visa holders intend to settle permanently and become British citizens, and they are highly skilled. Almost six in 10 hold a degree or postgraduate qualification, compared with a third of the UK population. Despite that, only about half are currently in work, compared with three quarters of the UK as a whole. That gap reflects the barriers that people still face—barriers that we should be helping to dismantle.

I have seen at first hand the contributions of Hong Kong families in Bracknell. I recently met members of our local Hong Kong community, and while I was inspired by their resilience and the way they have enriched our town, I also heard about the barriers and uncertainty that they now face. I thank the 487 Bracknell constituents who signed the petition on BNO visas that we are here today to discuss.

One young woman at my meeting told me about how ready she is to continue her studies, but that she has been priced out of university because she does not yet qualify for home fees. Extending the length of time BNO visa holders must wait to secure settled status also means extending the length of time they are liable to pay international fees, despite living in this country, achieving their A-levels at UK schools and looking to build their adult lives and careers in, and lend their considerable talents to, the UK.

Another constituent is a talented professional dancer who teaches local students. She is unable to dance for Britain in international competitions because of her visa status, despite being exactly the kind of role model we should be championing. I also met a young married couple who have bought a home and started a life in Bracknell, but feel they cannot yet start a family because of uncertainty over their future status. These stories are not abstract policy points; they are the lived experiences of people who are already making an incredible contribution to our country and our community.

It was precisely because of these concerns that I, together with Labour colleagues, wrote earlier this summer to the then Home Secretary, who is now the Foreign Secretary. We urged her to ensure that BNO visa holders are not unfairly disadvantaged by retrospective changes to the settlement route, and that the promises made to Hongkongers when this scheme was created are properly upheld.

At my public meeting, I was saddened but not shocked to hear that some members of the Bracknell Forest Hong Kong community had chosen not to come because of the fear of transnational repression. They were concerned that by engaging in the democratic process and speaking to their local Member of Parliament—a right that must be available to every man, woman and child living in this country—they would make themselves a target for the long reach of the Chinese and Hong Kong Governments. That is a powerful reminder of why the previous UK Government, with the Labour party’s full support, brought in the BNO visa route in the first place: the Hong Kong national security law. We owe it to the Hongkongers rebuilding their lives in the UK to ensure that the BNO visa scheme is properly bespoke, so that we can live up to our historic obligations.

[Mark Pritchard (in the Chair)]

May I just say to the Minister that his socks are in order? The Clerks are excellent, because I now know that the first reference to socks in the House of Commons was in 1842, in a manufacturing debate. To reassure him, there is no mention whatever of socks in the “Rules of behaviour and courtesies in the House of Commons” or in “Erskine May”, which of course was first published in 1844. Members can therefore all be reassured, and certainly the Minister can be: his socks are in order. There is a ruling.

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[Several hon. Members rose—]

[Mark Pritchard (in the Chair)]

Order. Votes in the House are always, as we know, a moveable feast. However, it is likely that there will be eight votes later this evening, so perhaps everybody here in Westminster Hall could keep an eye on the main Chamber, unless they want to come back here later in—I don’t know—95 minutes. It is entirely up to Members, because I will not be here, but they will.

--- Later in debate ---

[Several hon. Members rose—]

[Mark Pritchard (in the Chair)]

Order. Before I call the Front Benchers, an update from the Chamber: there are apparently more Members standing now than there were even 10 minutes ago. At the discretion of the shadow Minister and the Minister, we can run the debate for the full time to 7.30 pm, which is great.

--- Later in debate ---

[Katie Lam]

I am closing; I apologise.

Will the Minister confirm that applying any changed rules to those already here will be within the scope of the Government’s planned consultation on ILR? Will he commit to ensuring that that consultation is open to responses from members of the public?

[Mark Pritchard (in the Chair)]

I call the Minister, and congratulate him on his new position.