Immigration that works for science

Immigration is a hot topic in today’s political landscape, and CaSE is fighting hard for an immigration system that works for science and engineering.

The future of the UK’s relationship with the European Union remains largely unknown, particularly with regards to the movement of people between the UK and the European Economic Area (EEA). The internationality and collaborative nature of research mean that a flexible, fair and transparent immigration system is key to the success of UK science and engineering. This is an area in which CaSE has had a long-standing interest in, and has worked tirelessly to represent the views of our members within the sector.

As part of wider work regarding the future of immigration, the Government has commissioned the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) to open a consultation assessing the EEA migrant workforce in the UK labour market. The particular call for evidence seeks input around EEA migration trends, the recruitment practices and training of EEA migrants, and the economic and social impact of these migrants. As a major area of our work, CaSE will be providing a response to the consultation to outline the evidence of the role EEA migration in our sector and the features any new system would need if it is to support the UK’s science and engineering ambitions.

Last month, CaSE held an immigration member forum, with representatives from charities, universities research institutes and professional bodies, along with a member of the MAC. The forum raised a number of concerns about the future of immigration to the UK, firstly regarding the language and rhetoric that surrounds the wider debate. The term ‘brightest and best’ that is often used by the Government is severely restrictive and ill-phrased, and many would not see themselves as the brightest or the best, even though they may be groups that the Government considers highly valuable.

The discussion then turned to those within the technical workforce in science and engineering, people who are highly skilled and specialised but perhaps would not pass the current Tier 2 visa criteria imposed on individuals from outside the EEA. The message was clear, that these staff members are crucial to every organisation, and that the complexities of roles in science and engineering meant that current visa systems would not be appropriate for the EEA workforce post-Brexit. Finally, a simple but resounding message was that the Government must provide concrete assurances to EEA nationals already residing in the UK to continue to live and work in Britain.

CaSE is working to respond to the MAC consultation, and should any CaSE members wish to feed into our work, please do get in touch.

Author: James Tooze is Policy Officer at Campaign for Science and Engineering. 

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