Question
The Home Secretary will be well aware that the need for migrant workers varies throughout the country. What assessment has the Home Office made of the impact that these rule changes will make on areas such as mine in Lanarkshire, where the gap between the numbers of healthy working-age people and retirees is widening exponentially?
Answer
My hon. Friend will know that immigration policy is a reserved matter and applies UK-wide, so the rules that we have announced today apply to everyone everywhere. The Government will publish an impact assessment in the normal way, around the same time as when the immigration rules are laid.
Verdict: RED (20/100)
The question asked how the immigration rule changes would affect Lanarkshire and its widening gap between working-age and retired residents. The reply does not give a view on that local impact. It says immigration policy is reserved to Westminster and that the rules apply across the UK, and it promises an impact assessment later. The reply is therefore mostly hedged and defers the substantive answer, so the person who asked would likely need to ask again for specifics.
How we got there
| Question item | Coverage | Specificity | Rationale |
|---|---|---|---|
| What is the Home Office's assessment or view of the impact of the proposed immigration rule changes on areas such as Lanarkshire, which face a widening gap between working-age and retired populations? | Partially Addressed | Hedged | The reply does not state any view on how the rule changes would affect Lanarkshire or its widening working-age/retired population gap. It says only that immigration is reserved and the rules apply UK-wide, and promises an impact assessment later, which defers the substantive assessment rather than giving one now. |