A top UK business group wants 'transition period' on Brexit immigration reform

The head of one of Britain’s biggest business groups has attacked the government’s post-Brexit immigration plans as economically damaging and misguided.

Carolyn Fairbairn, the director general of the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), said on Monday: “Pulling up the drawbridge, very quickly we understand, would be very damaging and needs a rethink.

“We have built massively successful businesses based on the concept of freedom of movement. You change that overnight and the damage to our economy would be enormous. There has to be, at the very least, a transition, another one if you like, to enable businesses to adapt.”

Fairbairn was speaking at the CBI’s annual conference in London, addressing around 1,500 of the group’s members. The CBI represents around 190,000 businesses in the UK, which employ around 7 million people.

Her comments came before UK prime minister Theresa May gave a speech at the same event emphasising the benefits of Britain’s post-Brexit immigration possibilities.

“The core of our new immigration system will not be quota-based,” May said in her speech. “It will be skills-based.”

May said she would ensure Britain ends freedom of movement, instead prioritising high-skilled immigration from places like India and Sydney. The government’s migration advisory committee recommended earlier this year that the UK block any foreign workers earning less than £30,000 ($38,500).

Fairbairn said: “What has been proposed so far won’t work for our economy.”

“This idea that £30,000 is the cut-off point below which we stop people coming here — look at the people in our economy who would be affected by that: the construction workers, the care workers, the people who are doing fantastically important jobs,” she said. “This is a really serious issue and we do have a major difference with the government on it.

“My question to the government is: what is your plan? Where are the people going to come from that are going to work in our businesses and power our economy?”

Fairbairn said the current policy was based on “false choices” and “arbitrary targets”. She called for a the government to consult with business on a new immigration policy.

“It is a reasonable objective for the UK to want to bring down immigration. We heard it in the referendum, the idea of there being a more controlled system of immigration is entirely fine,” she said.