Home Office not considering Scottish visa

The SNP has accused Labour of making “big promises and no delivery” after the government confirmed it was not considering setting up a Scotland-specific visa system.

Stephen Gethins, an SNP MP, is to bring forward a bill on Thursday to empower the Scottish Government to establish a visa scheme.

That power is currently reserved to the UK Government under the Scotland Act.

Scottish Labour’s general election manifesto included a commitment to work with the Scottish Government on workforce plans and immigration, to “ensure our migration and skills policies work for every part of the UK”.

And Labour MP for Glasgow East John Grady said in a debate on Tuesday that home secretary Yvette Cooper was “looking at the issue carefully”.

But a UK Government source seemed to reject that suggestion on Wednesday, saying: “This is not government policy and not something the home secretary is considering.”

The UK as a whole is facing the challenge of an ageing population, but that problem is more acute in Scotland.

The most recent statistics found Scotland’s natural population has fallen for the last nine consecutive years due to deaths outnumbering births.

But inward migration meant total population has continued to grow.

There have long been calls for Scotland to have a separate immigration policy to the rest of the UK in light of this challenge, but UK Governments over the years have resisted those calls.

Gethins, who is the SNP’s Scotland and international affairs spokesperson, said a Scottish visa would “allow us to tackle the Brexit-born staff shortages that have inflicted pain and hardship upon our NHS and Scottish businesses”.

He said his party would work with the UK Government to ensure migration policies meet skills needs, and “if they refuse then it’s only right that Holyrood is given the power to take action”.

His Devolution (Immigration) (Scotland) Bill will be introduced under the ten minute rule process at Westminster.

After the topic was raised during a debate on Scotland’s economy on Tuesday, Grady said: “Scottish Labour and the Labour party are in favour of bringing talented people into Scotland, and the Scottish Government are welcome to work with us as we seek to ensure that that takes place.

“As I understand it, the home secretary is determined to ensure that it does, and I also understand that the Migration Advisory Committee is looking at the issue carefully.

“There is no doubt that we want to ensure that talented people can come and work in Scotland; the question is how to do it, and we are seeking to work with the Scottish Government productively on that.”

Speaking after the news that the Home Office was not planning to introduce a Scottish visa, Gethins said: “During the election campaign Scottish Labour claimed a Labour government was open to a Scottish visa, but now we know the truth and it's the same old Westminster story – big promises and no delivery. 

“This is incredibly embarrassing for Scottish Labour, but it's the Scottish economy and our NHS that will pay the price for this chaos as we continue to face crippling staff shortages thanks to Westminster's hard Brexit and immigration policies.”