UK Labour Party split on post-Brexit immigration policy
Jeremy Corbyn has announced plans to create a "migrant impact fund" to ease the pressure on social services after forcefully defending immigration from the EU and elsewhere. The latest announcement has caused a fresh split in his shadow cabinet as some members believe that the interest of many lifelong supporters of the Labour party who voted to leave the EU and for a change on immigration are not being represented by the party. While the Labour leader does not believe Britain should look to cut immigration, members of the shadow cabinet continue to call for enhanced immigration controls.
Jeremy Corbyn has mounted a forceful defence of immigration from the EU and elsewhere before his party conference speech, causing a fresh split in his shadow cabinet.

The Labour leader is expected to use his speech to promise a Labour government will not “sow division” by promising to cut immigration.

His position suggests Labour will not respond to the Brexit vote by seeking curbs on free movement of people across the EU, but senior shadow cabinet ministers have said there must be controls and the current system is in chaos.



Speaking on BBC Radio 4 on Wednesday morning, Corbyn said he understood “the problems that can come in some areas”, which is why he would create a “migrant impact fund” to ease pressure on public services.

He added: “Migrants that have come to this country make an enormous contribution to it. Our conference understands that and Tom Watson put that case very well about the work that migrants have done in the NHS and education and other industries ... we should live with that but also understand the number of British people.”

Pointing out that numbers vary from year to year, Corbyn said there were many industries such as farming that depended on migrant labour.

Asked if people should stop worrying about immigration, he said: “We have to allay people’s concerns about the impact ... and recognise the huge contribution made to our economy and the numbers of people working in the NHS that are pretty crucial to the survival of the NHS.”

Corbyn suggested the UK should continue to accept free movement from the EU, while maintaining access to the single market on the same basis as other member states.

But some of his frontbench allies were already striking a different tone, including Angela Rayner, the shadow education secretary, and Andy Burnham, the shadow home secretary.

In a conference intervention, Burnham will say: “Labour must face up fully to this fact: millions of our lifelong supporters voted to leave the EU and voted for change on immigration.”

Rayner told BBC there must be “controls” and described the current system as chaos. “We have to have controls on immigration, that’s quite clear,” she told BBC News. “You have to know who is coming in to your country and who is leaving your country.

“We have to got to make sure that our economic situation is good for everybody because immigration is a good thing for us, but what undermines [that] is when people feel that it is unvetted and that we are not able to deal with the issues and the concerns that people have around that.”

Corbyn repeatedly said during the referendum campaign that he did not believe Britain should seek to cut immigration. The Labour leader will tell conference on Wednesday: “A Labour government will not offer false promises. We will not sow division or fan the flames of fear. We will instead tackle the real issues of immigration – and make the changes that are needed.”

His spokesman told journalists: “He is not concerned about numbers,” adding that rather than seeking controls on immigration, Labour would seek to mitigate its effects on low-paid workers with the reintroduction of a “migrant impact fund”.

Gordon Brown introduced a £50m fund to ease the pressure of migration on public services in 2008 but David Cameron’s coalition government scrapped it in the summer of 2010.

Corbyn’s spokesman said: “As long as the consequences of immigration are tackled, it is not an objective to reduce the numbers, to reduce immigration.”

The prime minister, Theresa May, has made clear she will seek controls on freedom of movement when Brexit negotiations commence, and some Labour MPs believe that message will resonate with working-class voters who feel their wages are under pressure.

The Leeds West MP, Rachel Reeves, told a fringe meeting on Tuesday that her constituency was like a “tinder box” and voters’ concerns about immigration and lack of control over their lives could “explode” on to the streets if they remained unaddressed.

Reeves is among several prominent backbenchers, including Chuka Umunna, Stephen Kinnock and Emma Reynolds, who have responded to the vote to leave the EU with calls to reopen the debate on freedom of movement. Yvette Cooper, the former shadow home secretary, also called for changes to free movement before the last election.