WITH members of Parliament demob-happy in readiness of recess this week, a discriminatory hike in fees affecting migrant workers and students is announced by the Home Office.

It is scandalous from the Home Office which, according to the Times, reportedly made a half a billion pounds’ profit in 2019. This was an increase of 91 per cent since 2014. 

At the time leading newspapers exposed the “rampant profiteering” from immigration fees. The Independent quoted the Dean of Durham Law School Tom Brooks, who stated: “The Home Office already makes a hefty profit of 900 per cent on the processing of immigration fees. Not only are migrants paying the full costs for the delivery of immigration services, a large share of what is charged goes to non-immigration purposes.”

The Guardian looked at the disproportionate impact on young people who have grown up in Britain and are being forced into destitution as a result of fees that have more than trebled from 2014-19.

In 2019 the Home Office justified the increases and profiteering as a necessity to operate the border, immigration and citizenship system to reduce the burden on British taxpayers.

Roll on to the present. The British economy is in tatters; capitalism in perpetual crisis, pushed into the abyss by an ideologically driven Conservative government briefly led by Liz Truss as PM and Kwasi Kwarteng as chancellor.

The ill-advised “mini-budget” of September 23 2022 wiped out £30 billion and created a fiscal hole of £60bn. 

The actions by the dynamic duo — for whom the Establishment has acquired collective amnesia — was to provide tax relief to the rich, give a few crumbs of comfort to the poor and reverse the proposed increases in corporation tax. 

The world watched in horror as Britain’s PM pressed the self-destruct button, like a character out of Ian Fleming’s James Bond.

Rishi Sunak at the time had predicted during Tories’ internal hustings that such a policy by Truss would destroy the economy, damage the housing market and increase mortgage payments. All true to date, but conveniently forgotten by the Tories and the man himself. 

The narrative now is that it’s all due to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. From the eye-watering increases in fuel costs in the winter to the increases in basic food, supermarket chains placing security devices on tubs of butter and reports of theft of food and drinks by school students.

Working-class and middle-income earners are also struggling to survive and feed themselves or maintain their homes. Households, having to choose between heating and eating. With thousands of jobs threatened unions have resorted to industrial action. 

Prime Minister Sunak, instead of tackling the root cause of inflation, has acted as a blockage to reasonable pay settlements, issuing an arbitrary limit to a pay increase of 6 per cent for the public sector. 

Sunak continues to ignore the obscene profits of billions by the energy companies and the potential of taxing non-doms. Instead, the PM is pandering to the racist, discriminatory and divisive agenda of Suella Braverman in targeting students and migrants. 

British Indians applauded and welcomed Sunak when he became PM, in a misinformed belief that he would empathise with them. That he would appreciate their positive contribution as 4 per cent of the population adding 9 per cent to the UK’s GDP. That the Tory government would acknowledge the £41.9bn annual input by foreign students towards the British economy.

The Tories, true to their class, have shown no compassion and reduced the very limited rights of vulnerable international students. Apart from the economic impact, the denial of dependants joining long-term students will divide families.

If this was not enough, further increases in visa and immigration fees in the middle of a cost-of-living crisis are announced, the greatest impact of which will be on students and highly skilled migrants mainly from India. 

These are:

• The immigration health surcharge — increasing from £624 a year to £1,035;

• IHS for students and under-18s — increasing from £470 a year to £776;

• Work and visit visas up by 15 per cent — increasing a skilled worker visa from £625 to £718.75;

• Indefinite leave to remain (ILR) applications up by at least 20 per cent — increasing from £2,404 to at least £2,880 (This is the status before a migrant can transition from a visa to citizenship)

• British citizenship up by at least 20 per cent — increasing from £1,330 to at least £1,596.

Others, including study visas, settlement, wider entry clearance, certificates of sponsorship and priority visas, would also go up by at least 20 per cent.

All opposition parties must state their position, scrutinise these increases in minute detail and ask for an impact assessment on equality and justice. 

The Indian Workers Association GB and fraternal organisations shall look at building a campaign to commit a future Labour government to roll back the increases. 

Harsev Bains is national vice-president of the Indian Workers Association.