Kemi Badenoch: Get tough on migration or risk unrest like France

Kemi Badenoch has urged Shabana Mahmood to be tough on immigration to avoid Britain “ending up with so much civil unrest” like France, amid a cabinet backlash to the home secretary’s proposed reforms. The Tory party leader said she would lend the home secretary the support of her MPs if the reforms were “tightening up the system”, warning her not to be “weak” or “give in to Labour ministers and backbenchers”. Most commented 1 Forgotten particle may hold key to how universe survived big bang Science 231 comments 2 Lily Allen: ‘I felt I was a vehicle for male pleasure — not my own’ Music 210 comments 3 ‘We got a call yesterday. Birth mum’s had another baby’ Parenting 24 comments 4 Doctor Who and me — Russell T Davies on his life in TV Books 21 comments 5 Budget 2026 predictions: when is it and what could be announced? Economics 232 comments Under plans set out by Mahmood last year, foreign citizens would have to live in Britain for 15 years before they could be granted permanent settlement, up from five years at present. The home secretary Shabana Mahmood, left, and the secretary of state for housing Angela Rayner ADAM VAUGHAN/EPA Migrants would be able to shorten the wait for indefinite leave to remain (ILR) status if they earned a salary above a certain threshold, or contributed to their communities, such as through volunteering. Top stories 1 16 of the best safaris in Africa Africa Opponents of the plans have raised concerns that it will hit certain sectors harder than others, such as social care, where many workers are migrants and poorly paid. Advertisement Miatta Fahnbulleh, the energy secretary, and Angela Rayner, the housing secretary, have separately criticised the reforms. Top stories 1 Prepare now for the inheritance tax mess coming for your pension Tax Andy Burnham is also understood to be concerned about the proposals, which are expected to be watered down by the Home Office this year. France has been hit by days of violent protests MATTHIEU RONDEL/AFP/GETTY IMAGES Badenoch said: “I’m not going to give Shabana Mahmood advice on managing her own cabinet ministers, but I always said that what she was trying to do would not wash with the bulk of the Labour Party. “I don’t think she’s going far enough, but we will support her if she is tightening up the system. But if she is weak and gives in to Labour ministers and backbenchers, then I am afraid we are going to see a lot more problems in the country. I don’t want us to end up like how France is ending up with so much civil unrest .” The Tory leader added that “it should not be so easy to get British citizenship” because doing so was a “privilege”. Advertisement Fahnbulleh has said extending the time it takes for a migrant to claim ILR threatened “the process of building cohesion”, in a post on her constituency website. The energy secretary Miatta Fahnbulleh Maja Smiejkowska/PA The energy secretary said her own constituency of Peckham, in southeast London, was a “good example” of what could happen when people were “given the opportunity to integrate and participate”. She added: “If we continually prolong the time people have to wait for settlement, we can also prolong the process of building cohesion. “We need to raise the level of the debate, challenge divisive political rhetoric and make the case for communities like the one we have in Peckham. That means talking about immigration with care, control and compassion.” Allies of the energy secretary said the post had been written on her behalf by her team to provide constituents with minutes of a public meeting she had attended on September 25. They said that the article had poorly paraphrased what she had said and would be updated with clearer language. Advertisement Rayner said in an interview with The Times last month that the changes would affect foreign care workers who had “moved their lives here to look after our loved ones”. She said she had concerns “especially in regards to the carers, who were asked to come to this country to care for some of our most vulnerable and then we changed the goalposts years down the line”. Politics newsletter Get our daily insider’s guide to Westminster, plus a rundown of PMQs every Wednesday. Sign up with one click You’ve successfully signed up to the Politics newsletter Explore our newsletters An error occurred. Please use the link below. Politics newsletter Explore our newsletters Rayner added: “I think that’s very disruptive. I do have concerns about that. When you ask someone to come here and look after your most vulnerable and they spend years dedicating themselves, moving their lives here to look after our loved ones.” Rayner told Times Radio on Tuesday morning: “The consultation that Shabana did in terms of retrospective action was about putting fairness in the system. I’m confident that Shabana will land in a place that is fair to the taxpayers, fair to people who come to this country, who contribute, who have been asked to come to this country and contribute. “And there was a consultation and Shabana will set out her plans. And she has my full confidence in that. You can see by Shabana’s record that people have not been able to tackle this issue for years. The last Conservative government didn’t tackle the issue. Shabana is completely tackling the issue and she’s doing a fantastic job.”