What is the SNP’s policy on immigration?

Scotland needs an immigration policy suited to our specific circumstances and needs. Scotland needs people to want to work here, in our businesses, our universities and in our public services. The current UK one-size-fits-all approach to immigration is failing Scotland.

UK immigration policies do not take into account Scotland’s unique circumstances and they are harmful to our communities and future prosperity. Tory immigration proposals would be disastrous for Scotland. They will send our working-age population into decline, threaten tax revenues and cause serious staffing shortages in our NHS, care services and key sectors such as tourism, agriculture and construction.

With independence, and full power over migration policy, we can build asylum and immigration systems geared to meet Scotland’s needs and founded on fairness and human rights.

Until then, we will continue to call on the UK Government to introduce a fair and humane asylum and refugee system where people have the right to work and to contribute to society, and to lift the harmful restrictions caused by No Recourse to Public Funds.

The UK Government should also review family migration, looking at the definition of family members, costs, and children born here, and extend the rights of EU nationals in the UK automatically, or at the very least to cancel the deadline for the EU Settlement Scheme.