Family Visas: Income Requirement Debate
Full Debate: Read Full DebateDepartment: Department for Education
Mark Pritchard
Main Page: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)Department Debates - View all Mark Pritchard's debates with the Department for Education
(1 day, 10 hours ago)
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Several hon. Members rose—
Mark Pritchard (in the Chair)
Order. I welcome the children to the Gallery—I think this is the first time that I have seen children here. The Chair is neutral in the debate, but you are all very welcome.
Right hon. and hon. Members should bob, as some of you are doing, even if you are on the speaking list, so that the Clerks have your name. At the moment, there is no time limit, but I hope that hon. Members will bear one another in mind when speaking.
Seema Malhotra
I do not think that the hon. Gentleman was in the Chamber at the start of the debate.
Seema Malhotra
As always, the hon. Gentleman is welcome to catch me after the debate.
In relation to impact assessments, the previous Government published some initial analysis, which was referenced in the debate, on the volume impacts of the first stage of the minimum income requirement increase in December 2023, when the decision was announced. They committed to publishing the full analysis in the impact assessment, but that was not done when the rules changed or when the general election took place.
Impact assessments are important to enable scrutiny of the impact of the increase of the MIR. That is why we published the regulatory and equalities impact assessments for net migration measures under the previous Government in September and paused any further increases while the Migration Advisory Committee reviews the financial requirements in the family immigration rules. Once the MAC report has been received, a further equalities impact assessment will be completed to inform any further changes that are made.
To conclude, I thank hon. Members who have contributed to the debate. The Government’s position is clear: we support the right to family life and value the contribution that those from overseas make to our economy, public services and civic life. We recognise that that needs to be balanced as part of a fair, managed and controlled migration system.