The UK Labour government has signalled that it may revise immigration laws to attract foreign nationals, who constitute a significant portion of the care sector workforce.
This development comes amid growing concerns about the potential closure of care homes in Wales, driven by restrictive immigration policies introduced by the previous Conservative government.
Official figures indicate that the number of people applying for UK visas to work in the care sector plummeted by 80% in the first quarter of 2024.
This sharp decline is largely attributed to the immigration laws introduced in March by the Conservative administration under then-Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.
Sunak’s government had imposed a ban preventing foreign healthcare workers from bringing their families to the UK, drastically reducing the number of applications from overseas.
Before these restrictions, thousands of Zimbabweans, among others, were flocking to the UK for work in the care sector.
The new rules, however, have significantly altered this trend.
Care Forum Wales (CFW) has expressed alarm over the March rule changes, making it more difficult for foreign care workers to relocate to the UK with their families.
The forum warned that these restrictions are contributing to the closure of care homes across Wales, further exacerbating the already critical shortage of care workers.
Meryl Welsby, manager of Cartref Bryn yr Eglwys care home in Conwy County, highlighted the difficulty of recruiting local staff. “We’ve been trying to recruit locally for years, but no one applies for the jobs. No one wants to work weekends, nights, and it’s not attractive,” Welsby said.
The home, which relies heavily on overseas staff, currently employs carers from 10 different countries to look after its 30 residents.
Welsby criticized the government’s approach, stating, “It’s easy for the government to say, ‘Oh well, you can’t recruit from abroad to bring our numbers down,’ but the thing is, where are we going to recruit from? There’s nowhere else and nothing else we can do.”
CFW spokesperson and care home owner, Kim Ombler, echoed these concerns, warning that the care sector could face severe challenges if the situation does not improve.
“If we can’t get workers from abroad and also can’t get local workers to fill the gap, there’s a big worry that homes could close because of this,” Ombler said.
The UK government has defended its policy as part of a broader effort to reduce “historically high” immigration levels and to focus on “training more workers” within Britain.
However, the Labour government’s hint at revising these laws offers a glimmer of hope for Zimbabweans and other foreign nationals who play a crucial role in the UK’s care sector.
