More than 200,000 people have been granted indefinite leave to remain since ministers proposed tough restrictions last year, with thousands of migrants settling permanently in Britain every week.
Those granted settlement gain entitlement to lifetime benefits, NHS care and social housing. Figures suggest at least 5,000 people who have lived in the UK for five years, having legally arrived on visas, gain settlement each week.
Experts predict rise in numbers
Experts predict the figure will leap significantly in a few months when people who arrived during the pandemic gain the right to claim indefinite leave to remain.
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp said: "Every single day, hundreds of mainly low-wage or no-wage immigrants get the right to stay here permanently and claim benefits.
"Yet Shabana Mahmood continues to refuse to implement her own indefinite leave to remain changes to stop this – which she herself admits are needed to save £10billion."
Government plans under pressure
Speaking to the Daily Mail, Philp added: "Why is she delaying? It's because she's scared of Angela Rayner and the Left of the Labour Party, and she hasn't got the courage to implement her own plans.
"The Government is on the verge of capitulating, letting hundreds of thousands of low-wage and no-wage migrants stay forever."
Ministers have proposed tougher restrictions on legal migrants being able to claim indefinite leave to remain, but Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood recently signalled that she may have to water down those plans. Angela Rayner has said she is concerned about Labour's proposals to change visa rules, which would make it harder for foreign workers to secure permanent residency in the UK.
Reform UK criticism
Reform UK home affairs spokesman Zia Yusuf said Ms Mahmood had "capitulated to Labour's open-borders zealots".
He added: "Labour's internal bickering means thousands more will get indefinite leave to remain and unfettered access to our welfare system, all because Andy Burnham cannot control Rayner or his backbenchers."
Without reforms, 1.6 million people would be entitled to settle in the UK between 2026 and 2030.
Consultation response pending
A consultation on migration proposals, which received 200,000 responses, closed in February but the Home Office has not responded. Immigration rules were updated last week with no mention of indefinite leave to remain.
The Home Office said: "We are considering responses to our consultation on elements of these reforms."
