Dear Rachael Maskell,

As residents of York and part of its community, we are writing to express our deep concern about the immigration policy proposals announced by Keir Starmer on 12 May 2025. These measures, framed as a response to public anxiety over migration, risk aligning Labour with the exclusionary rhetoric of 'strangers' and punitive policies more commonly associated with the political right.

The proposed changes, including a 10-year residency requirement for citizenship, the end of overseas recruitment for social care, and stricter English language thresholds, are both economically short-sighted and socially divisive. They risk deepening racial and class inequalities by disproportionately affecting migrants from the Global South and undermining the inclusive values that have historically defined the Labour movement.

There is strong evidence that migration contributes positively to our economy and society. In 2023 alone, international students brought £41.9 billion into the UK economy, with each non-EU student contributing a net benefit of £96,000. The University of York’s international student population supports hundreds of local jobs and services in York. Similarly, migrant workers comprise one in six NHS staff and one in three care workers. During the COVID-19 pandemic, it was these workers, many of them migrants, who kept the health system afloat, often while facing visa insecurity.

But the benefits of migration go far beyond economics. Migrants enrich our communities with language, food, music, and traditions, making our cities more vibrant and globally connected. In York, cultural festivals like the York International Festival of Ideas and the Aesthetica Film Festival succeed because of the diverse voices and perspectives migrants bring. Migrant-led businesses, community groups, and places of worship are not just contributors to the economy—they are the social fabric of our neighbourhoods.

A Labour leadership that has already failed pensioners struggling with fuel poverty, students burdened by tuition fees, parents with more than two children living in poverty, people with disabilities facing benefit cuts, and LGBTQ+ communities, cannot carry on unchecked and unchallenged. These immigration proposals are not an isolated incident; they are part of a broader pattern of abandoning the party’s historic commitment to justice, equality, and care for the most vulnerable.

Policies that treat migration as a problem to be managed rather than a strength to be supported risk turning Labour into a party of exclusion rather than solidarity. The language of “control” and “privilege” used in the new proposals echoes the rhetoric of the hostile environment, not the hopeful, inclusive vision that Labour should stand for.

We urge you to speak out against this policy direction. We need a migration system rooted in justice, not fear, recognising the humanity and contributions of those who come to live, work, and study in the UK. Please help ensure Labour remains a party of hope, fairness, and internationalism.