Care worker settlement plan splits Labour before conference

Proposed settlement changes put Labour’s immigration policy under pressure

The Communities Secretary raised her concerns in an interview with the Times, just a day before Andy Burnham's first conference as prime minister.

Under the proposed system, care workers who arrived in Britain from 2021 onwards could face a 15-year wait for settlement, compared with five years under the existing rules.

Rayner, who previously worked as a carer, argues that the change would be unfair to people who came to Britain to look after some of the country's most vulnerable residents.

She has already described the proposal as “un-British” and said Labour would be “changing the goalposts” for workers who had already made the move.

She added: “I don’t think that we’ve ever had an automatic right to citizenship for most people who come to the UK from overseas.”

Labour’s bid to cut migration faces disagreement within its own ranks

The plan forms part of the government's wider push to reduce immigration, an issue that has become increasingly important to voters and a key area of competition with Reform.

The party has been attracting record donations while also stepping up its campaign around immigration and what Britain should look like.

That leaves Labour facing pressure from both directions. The government must defend a policy intended to reduce migration, while Rayner's intervention highlights disagreement within its own ranks.

The timing could also prove awkward for Burnham. As Labour gathers in Liverpool, he will be trying to demonstrate unity at his first conference as prime minister, with the dispute over care workers threatening to dominate attention before his speech.