Focus On Visas For Indians As UK Opposition Leadership Race To Succeed Sunak Heats Up

London: Rishi Sunak had his time under the sun, serving as British Prime Minister from October 2022 to July 2024 before the Conservative party was routed by Labour in general elections.

Having served as Opposition leader after Keir Starmer assumed charge as Prime Minister, it’s time now for the Conservatives to select a new leader as Sunak’s successor.

Former Immigration minister Robert Jenrick and shadow Housing secretary Kemi Badenoch have emerged as the leading candidates in the race to replace Sunak. And interestingly, the focus of their campaigns is visa restrictions on Indians.

The issue led to intense debate as the Conservative Party conference got underway in Birmingham on Sunday.

Jenrick has called for tough visa restrictions on India, unless New Delhi takes back its nationals who are in the UK illegally.

Despite an agreement between the two countries, the number of deportations remains low, while India has benefited from 250,000 visas last year, claimed Jenrick.

Speaking to The Daily Telegraph, Jenrick said that “severe visa restrictions” and cuts to foreign aid should be imposed on countries that refuse to take back illegal migrants.

Badenoch has also targeted immigration, condemning the fact that new migrants have brought their disputes from India to cause unrest on UK streets, referring to incidents in Leicester last year following an India-Pakistan cricket match.

“It is quite clear that there are many people who have recently come to this country who have brought views from their countries of origin that have no place here. I saw as Equalities minister people bringing cultural disputes from India to the streets of Leicester… we need to make sure that when people come to this country, they leave their previous differences behind. This is not a controversial thing to say,” Badenoch told the BBC.

The next few weeks will be interesting, and India will have their ears and eyes fixed on Conservative party’s activities.

The leadership election will be decided in an online vote by Conservative Party members, with the new leader expected to be announced on November 2.