UK Poll: 2 Reasons Nigerians must be concerned as Labour battles Conservatives

On Thursday, July 4, the United Kingdom (UK) holds its general election. The general election is to elect Members of Parliament (MPs) to the House of Commons. Millions of UK voters go to the polls to elect the 650 MPs who will sit in the House of Commons.

The UK is divided into 650 areas, called constituencies, each of which will elect one MP to represent local residents. Most candidates represent a political party, but some are independent candidates.

Reasons Nigerians should follow UK election Photo Credit: @Keir_Starmer, @RishiSunak
Source: Twitter

According to the BBC Pidgin, political parties contesting the upcoming elections have presented their manifestoes, outlining policies that will impact Nigerians. Here are some key issues that matter to you:

Migration policies that may affect Nigerians

The Conservative and Labour parties have promised to reduce the number of people migrating to the UK if elected. The Conservatives aim to attract only the brightest and best-skilled migrants to contribute to businesses and public services. They plan to achieve this by setting legal limits on migration and reducing the number of work and family visas issued each year.

In contrast, the Labour Party plans to reform the points-based immigration system and end the long-term reliance on overseas workers. The Scottish National Party (SNP) wants Scotland to have the power to attract more foreign migrants and plans to reinstate free movement from the EU and issue visas with minimal hassle.

Nigerians schooling in the UK

Education: Currently, international students in the UK are eligible for a graduate visa that allows them to stay in the country for at least two years after graduation. Only those on post-graduate research programmes can bring their family members to the country.

The major parties have not mentioned changing this policy, but Nigel Farage, leader of Reform UK, has promised to ban students from bringing their partners and children to the UK. On the other hand, the Green Party wants to allow students to bring their families and also grant visa holders the right to vote.

How many Nigerians travelled to UK in 2013

In 2023, out of the 1.2 million people who migrated to the UK, 141,000 were Nigerians, the highest number from any African country and the second-highest from non-European Union countries after India.

Source: Legit.ng