Suella Braverman calls for annual cap on net migration, saying new figures ‘slap in face to British public’ – as it happened

Former home secretary Suella Braverman. Photograph: Oli Scarff/AFP/Getty Images

5.34pm GMT

Afternoon summary

• Net migration boosted the UK population by a record 745,000 in the year to December 2022, fuelled in part by a surge in overseas professionals arriving to work in the NHS and care homes and prompting a furious response from rightwing Conservatives. The former home secretary Suella Braverman called the figures “a slap in the face to the British public” and called for much tougher visa restrictions and an annual cap on net migration. (See 4.09pm.)

• The Labour MP Alex Cunningham has said that he does not accept James Cleverly’s claim that, in the Commons yesterday, he did not call Stockton a “shit-hole”, but he did call Cunningham, one of its MPs, a “shit”. The home secretary issued this account of what happened after Ben Houchen, the Tory Tees Valley mayor, joined Labour MPs saying Cleverly should apologise for his slur on the town. (See 2.20pm.) Cunningham told Radio 4’s PM programme he did not believe Cleverly’s new version of what happend and that people had seen the minister describe the town as a “shit-hole”. He went on:

I want an apology for the people of my community who are really upset about this.

As Mark Brown reports, Cleverly’s comment has provoked fury in the town.

But Houchen has welcomed Cleverly’s apology, describing him as “a good guy who made a mistake”.

I’m pleased James Cleverly has apologised for using unparliamentary language

Whatever was said, the speculation dragged Stockton’s name through the mud, which is unacceptable

We’re all human & he’s a good guy who made a mistake

Now let’s get back to building Teesside

I’m pleased James Cleverly has apologised for using unparliamentary language

Whatever was said, the speculation dragged Stockton’s name through the mud, which is unacceptable

We’re all human & he’s a good guy who made a mistake

Now let’s get back to building Teesside https://t.co/6wboa1b3fZ

— Ben Houchen (@BenHouchen) November 23, 2023

• British households are on course to be worse off at the end of a parliamentary term for the first time in modern history, leading economists have warned, after Jeremy Hunt’s £20bn autumn statement tax cuts favoured the richest 20% of earners.

• Jeremy Hunt has said he did not opt for “crowd-pleasing taxes” in his autumn statement as a pre-election giveaway, adding the government’s “long-term goal” is to boost the economy.

• The Scottish health secretary, Michael Matheson, is to be investigated by Holyrood authorities over the near-£11,000 bill racked up on his work iPad.

David Cameron, the foreign secretary, meeting Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem today. Photograph: GPO/KOBI GIDEON HANDOUT/EPA

Updated at 5.39pm GMT

5.17pm GMT

A reader asks:

Regarding the immigration numbers it would be interesting to know how many are students and how many have come to work in the NHS.

Is there anywhere where these numbers are available or (and this wouldn’t surprise me) do the government not know?

These figures are all in the ONS report.

It says study is the biggest reason for non-EU immigration.

The largest contributor to non-EU immigration (39%) was study, which was largely unchanged compared with YE June 22; however, while historic evidence has shown that more than 80% of students typically left within 5 years, analysis of more recent cohorts is suggesting that more are staying for longer and transitioning onto work visas …

Those immigrating long-term on study-related visas (main applicants and dependants) made up 39% of non-EU long-term immigration at 378,000 in the YE June 2023. This is an increase from 320,000 in the YE June 2022. This increase is mainly attributed to dependants (from 58,000 in YE June 2022 to 96,000 in YE June 2023). The Home Office’s statistics report, Why do people come to the UK? To study, suggests that this is because of an increase in the number of visas granted to dependants from Nigeria and India.

The increase in the number of people coming to the UK to study in the last two years may partly be reflected in the attraction of the new Graduate visa route. This visa route allows international students to apply to work in the UK for at least two years after completing their studies.

But it also says that it is the increase in people coming to work is what has been driving the overall increase in non-EU immigration.

The increase in non-EU immigration in the YE June 2023 was mainly driven by migrants coming for work (up to 33% from 23% in YE June 2022), largely attributed to those coming on health and care visas; in contrast, those arriving on humanitarian routes decreased from 19% to 9% over the same period …

Those immigrating long-term on work-related visas (main applicants and dependants) made up 33% of non-EU long-term immigration in the YE June 2023, with an estimated 322,000 arrivals. This is compared with 198,000 in YE June 2022. This is split fairly evenly between main applicants (169,000) and dependants (154,000).

The Home Office’s statistics report, Why do people come to the UK? To work, shows growth in long-term sponsored work visas following the introduction of the “Skilled Worker” and “Skilled Worker - Health and Care” visas in 2020. Health and Care work visas were the most common type of work visa that dependants came to the UK on and is driving the increase in immigration of those on work dependant visas (from 86,000 in YE June 2022 to 154,000 in YE June 2023).