MIGRATION is a “political football that can be kicked away at a moment’s notice,” campaigners warned today after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak faced calls from business leaders to allow more overseas workers to plug domestic labour shortages.

The Migrants Rights Network told the Morning Star that “our acceptance of migrants should not be conditional on migrant workers bailing out our economic crisis through their productivity.”

The London-based non-governmental organisation also urged Tory ministers to help “create a culture where migrants are able to flourish and stop demonising people for seeking a better life or achieving aspirations.”

The demand was made after Mr Sunak told the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) that Britain must become a “beacon for the best and brightest by creating one of the world’s most attractive visa regimes for entrepreneurs and highly skilled people.”

Ahead of the business organisation’s two-day annual conference in Birmingham, CBI director-general Tony Danker had urged a “more liberalised stance on immigration to help boost economic growth,” but Mr Sunak largely avoided giving a direct answer to that demand. 

Instead, the PM used his keynote speech to stress that the government's focus is on reducing the number of people crossing the English Channel in small boats.

Downing Street later encouraged employers to “invest in Britons rather than rely on workers from overseas.”

In response, Mr Danker said: “It was great to hear the Prime Minister’s deeply held convictions and passion for innovation and the role it can play as one of the most important drivers of the UK’s future economic growth.

“[Mr Sunak] started to lay out a vision for a new approach, but what we didn’t get are the details of the measures to achieve it.

“Businesses are making investment decisions now and need to hear more on this agenda as soon as possible.”