Call for more visas to ease shortage of UK workers
Call for more visas to ease shortage of UK workers in sectors such as hospitality and tourism, influential think-tank says
More temporary visas should be given to foreign workers under 30 to ease a labour shortage in sectors such as hospitality and tourism, an influential think-tank has said.
The Youth Mobility Scheme already allows 18 to 30-year-olds from nations including Australia and Canada to work in the UK for two years.
Temporary: The Youth Mobility Scheme already allows 18 to 30-year-olds from nations including Australia and Canada to work in the UK for two years
They are not permitted to bring in dependants, have limited access to public services and must possess at least £2,530 in savings.
The Policy Exchange, whose advisers include Lord Frost, argues the scheme should be ‘unilaterally’ extended to all European Union countries.
David Goodhart from the Exchange said: ‘It’s a tried and tested scheme. It’s short-term, temporary migration involving skilled and unskilled workers.’
He said the scheme should apply to more nations than the current ten. He added: ‘The Government doesn’t have the political bandwidth to negotiate deals with 27 separate EU countries and the EU doesn’t want to do an EU-wide deal – more fool them. So we should act unilaterally.’
Kate Nicholls, boss of trade body UKHospitality, also wants to see the scheme extended.
A Home Office spokesman said: ‘We remain open to negotiating Youth Mobility Scheme arrangements with other countries…if partner countries are also willing to provide the same opportunities for young British people.’