MAC letter to the Home Secretary on the 2021 annual report (accessible version)
Published 15 December 2021
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Migration Advisory Committee
1st Floor Peel Building NE
2 Marsham Street
London
SW1P 4DF
Rt Hon Priti Patel MP
Home Secretary
2 Marsham Street
London
SW1P 4DF
15th December 2021
Dear Home Secretary,
I am pleased to advise you that we have now published the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) Annual Report for 2021.
The report provides an overview of the current labour market and gives some observations on the new immigration system, with a particular focus on the Skilled Worker route. We have provided commentary on a number of high-profile migration issues that have been faced this year including: the decision to create short term, temporary visa routes for HGV drivers and poultry workers and the varying estimates of the number of EU migrants that have left the UK during the pandemic. We also highlight favourable comments that we have received from many stakeholders regarding the operation and streamlining of the new immigration system. We also discuss the role that policy can play in ensuring successful integration of asylum applicants to the UK and recommend that the Government reconsider the current ban on employment.
We have also taken this opportunity to provide an update on our ongoing commission into adult social care, the substantive response of which will be published in April 2022. More specifically, after listening to a wide range of stakeholders and experts in the sector, we have provided an interim recommendation that we believe may provide some shorter-term support for this vital sector in this very testing time.
Alongside the Annual Report, we have also published an associated Annual Governance Report, providing transparency of MAC spending and engagement.
We look forward in the coming year to continue advising the Government on the development of an immigration policy that delivers for the people of the United Kingdom.
On behalf of the Migration Advisory Committee
Yours sincerely,
Professor Brian Bell
Chair, Migration Advisory Committee
cc:
Kevin Foster, Immigration Minister
Matthew Rycroft, Permanent Secretary
Shona Dunn, Second Permanent Secretary
Glyn Williams, Director General BICS