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March 31 2019

Brexit Irony-Immigration Likely To Rise Post-Brexit Says Lawyer

A leading business immigration lawyer has predicted that pre-referendum pledges to reduce immigration will ‘not survive’ Brexit and claimed the process will actually lead to great net immigration to the UK.

With Brexit continuing to bring uncertainty across business there are conflicting reports on how it will affect immigration. Sajid Javid claims that the government will control the ‘number and type’ of people allowed to live and work in the UK, Migration Watch UK predicts a 100,000 increase in net migration. 

Recent statistics show that while EEA migration has dropped sharply, non-EEA net migration is at its highest level for 15 years, with the government further than ever from its target of “tens, not hundreds of thousands” a year. 

Matthew Davies, a partner at Midlands law firm Wright Hassall, said: “The general idea was that leaving the EU would allow the UK to ‘take control’ over immigration, implying more stringent restrictions on those coming to live and work here. The reality is more nuanced. 

“The irony is that leaving the EU will, in the longer term, increase net economic migration to the UK, both legal and illegal, whatever people thought they were voting for,” says Davies.