Suella Braverman warned James Cleverly’s package to slash legal migration is “too late” as she urged the Government to go further.
The former home secretary said measures announced yesterday by her successor in a bid to get a grip on record net migration levels are a “step in the right director”.
But she suggested the restrictions will not be enough to bring down numbers before the next general election.
Mrs Braverman said: “I welcome the measures announced today to cut net migration. They are a step in the right direction.
“But we need to be honest. This package is too late and the Government can go further.
“If the salary threshold rise only takes effect in spring 2024, we won’t realistically see its impact until the 2025 ONS numbers.
“Had this been introduced a year or even six months ago, we would start to see a fall in the numbers before the next general election.
“As well as these proposals, we should go further: shortening the graduate route – not just reviewing it again; and we need an annual cap, set by Parliament, across all visa routes, so we don’t get into this terrible situation again and government can be properly held to account.
“I put forward similar measures six times in the last year.
“I’m glad that the PM has finally agreed to introducing some of them now but the delay has reduced their impact.”
Mr Cleverly set out his five-point plan in the Commons on Monday including hiking the salary threshold for skilled workers from overseas to £38,700 and stopping health and social care workers bringing dependants.
Rishi Sunak has been under intense pressure from Tory MPs to take action after revised estimates from the Office for National Statistics showed net migration to the UK hit a peak of 745,000 in 2022.
The Home Secretary said the measures would slash the number of people arriving in Britain by 300,000 a year.
Labour’s Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said the strategy is “an admission of years of total failure by this Conservative Government”.
