Brexiteers can feel free to petition the government for more of those non-EU workers they were so concerned about ...
www.theregister.co.uk/2018/03/08/skilled_worker_cap_undermines_business_confidence_government_told/
Forty industry bodies have called on UK government to rethink its cap on skilled workers' visas, which has been reached for the last three months running.
Skilled non-European workers wishing to work in the UK must enter through the Tier 2 (General) Visa route, which is used for most hires in the science and tech sectors, as well as healthcare.
However, government has capped entry through this route since 2011. The limit is currently set at 20,700 a year – a figure widely condemned by science and tech bodies and employers as arbitrary and unhelpful.
A fixed number are available each month – although government can sometimes "borrow" or carry over allocations – and once this cap is reached, any other applicants are prioritised on a points basis.
Jobs on the shortage occupation list – like physics teachers, nurses or mechanical engineers – and those that require a PhD will be ranked higher, with salary as the deciding factor. Anyone coming to the UK with a job offer of more than £159,600 escapes the cap entirely.
Up until recently, the cap had been hit only once, in June 2015, when it was revealed that some 66 applicants had been refused for engineering roles.
However, it has now been reached for each of the past three months, meaning government will prioritise shortage jobs first, followed by those with the highest salary.
(contd)
Plenty of people from India, Pakistan, Korea, China, Turkey, Jordan, UAE, Yemen, Nigeria, Kenya, South Africa, Ghana we could welcome in.