New frontiers

Immigration plays a vitally important and positive role in the UK’s economy, culture and identity. Entrepreneurs and investors bring capital and fresh ideas to our shores, businesses benefit substantially from skilled workers’ needed talents and education providers see value added in the breadth and depth of cultural diversity in their student populations. Indeed, we all benefit from immigration in many ways, and in this increasingly global society and economy it is imperative that our immigration system remains porous enough to permit the individuals, employees and students we need to enter and live in the UK in order to work, train, teach and learn.

Fickle boundaries

Immigration policy, however, is inherently fickle, and its own boundaries are continually expanded and contracted in reflection of the political climate, public perception and economic environment. As the reader is surely aware, our immigration system is in the process of retraction at present. In a business context, particularly in a global market, finding solid footing among these ebbs and flows can be frustrating,