Diane Abbott has criticised her own Government's changes to the immigration system in an intervention in the House of Commons, questioning the fairness of new settlement arrangements.
Labour has announced changes to the way migrants may apply for indefinite leave to remain (ILR), which critics have described as a U-turn. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said some workers will now need to wait five years for ILR, despite initially saying it should be 15. Securing ILR enables migrants to apply for benefits and housing, and to stay in the UK indefinitely.
A 'political football'
Ms Abbott said it was "extraordinary that the Opposition sees migration issues as some kind of political football" as she took aim at the Conservatives.
Moving on to Labour, she added: "These are people's lives we are talking about, whatever your idea about policy or programmes, and I think people's lives deserve more seriousness.
"It is right that care workers are exempted from the new arrangements for ILR? But for the rest of the workforce, the retrospective nature of these new arrangements still seems to be unfair. Because you can come legally, you can work legally and then have your residency rights turned upside down."
She asked the Home Secretary: "How can that be fair?"
Parents' contribution to the NHS
The London MP, who had the party whip removed before the last election and appeared to be initially barred from standing for Labour again, only to be let back in after a Left-wing bloc objected, then went on to claim her parents helped "build the NHS".
She added: "I have heard members of this House talk about people 'just coming here to claim welfare' ... 'people aren't making a contribution' ... 'we have to look at the rights of British nationals as opposed to migrants', as if many British nationals were not themselves immigrants.
"My parents were immigrants. My mother was a nurse – she was one of that generation that came to this country to build the NHS after the war. And it remains the case that immigrants play a very important role in our NHS ... we should always remember the contribution that immigrants made and continue to make to our society."
Ms Abbott was among the Labour MPs who signed a letter to the Home Secretary describing the proposals as "an iteration of Windrush-era policies".
