An increase in the baseline qualifying period for settlement, from 5 of 15 years had been proposed by U.K. U.K. Individuals could qualify for shorter or longer periods depending on income, immigration violations and other factors.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham has said that he stands by the principle that settlement (permanent residence) in the U.K. should be “earned” and not granted automatically. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood as part of a draft “earned settlement” immigration overhaul last year, during the Keir Starmer administration.
In recent weeks the Prime Minister has indicated that the government would soften the proposed stance towards social care workers. These individuals formed a significant part of the ‘Boriswave’ of migration – a surge in migrants in the early 2020s – who are now becoming eligible for settlement. Mr. “The British public …will be the bosses here. Mr. Burnham ruled out an early general election.
Burnham said during a TV interview on Monday (October 26, 2026) morning. The current parliament expires in 2029.
“We’ll set out the plan on that quite soon,” Mr. He said the government was still considering the responses received in the public consultation process that took place earlier this year. Burnham said that since the U.K. left the E.U. in 2016, things had not “played out as people said it would at the time” with the country’s economy weakening and control over immigration becoming more challenging. He said “revolving-door immigration” was being replaced by permanent immigration to the U.K. They will decide what will happen in relation to Brexit,” he said, as he denied that he was “testing the waters” with the public and media on how a return to the E.U. would be received.
