Hon. Davis Ansah Opoku, Member of Parliament (MP) for the Mpraeso Constituency, has condemned the United Kingdom’s proposed immigration reform that would double the waiting period for Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) for care workers and other skilled migrants.

In a strongly worded statement, the MP accused the UK government of violating the trust of thousands of professionals, including many Ghanaians, who moved there under previously guaranteed legal conditions.

“While I support the UK’s sovereign right to review and reform its immigration system, I am deeply concerned about the proposal to extend the qualifying period for Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) from 5 to 10 years for care workers and other skilled migrants”
Hon. Davis Ansah Opoku, MP for the Mpraeso

The UK’s plan to increase the ILR qualification period from five to ten years has triggered concerns across migrant communities and human rights circles. Hon. Opoku described the move as both unjust and deeply troubling, warning that it sets a dangerous precedent for future immigration reforms.

The Health and Care Worker visa, introduced under the Skilled Worker route, allowed migrants to apply for ILR after five years of lawful employment and residence.

This pathway, Hon. Opoku emphasised, was a major incentive for skilled professionals to relocate and fill crucial vacancies in the UK’s understaffed care sector – especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Hon. Davis Ansah Opoku, MP for the Mpraeso

Hon. Opoku stressed that the five-year ILR entitlement was not based on assumption or verbal assurance, but on formal UK immigration law and Home Office guidance. By altering this policy midstream, he argued, the UK is eroding a moral contract.

“This change is not just a policy shift – it undermines the good faith under which thousands of skilled professionals, particularly in the care sector, made life-altering decisions to relocate to the UK”
Hon. Davis Ansah Opoku, MP for the Mpraeso

He noted that Ghanaians and other Africans who accepted jobs abroad did so under terms they considered binding, and that any retroactive policy change will not only uproot their plans but diminish their dignity and welfare.

“The UK risks moving the goalposts for those who have already committed to building a future in the country,” he lamented, characterising the policy change as a betrayal of trust of those who stepped in during a global health crisis to support one of the world’s most fragile care systems.

Government Action

As an elected representative, Hon. Opoku urged Ghana’s leadership to act swiftly. He called on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, along with Ghana’s High Commission in London, to open formal diplomatic channels with the UK government.

He also appealed to regional and continental institutions to protect the rights of Africans abroad. “Take urgent interest in this matter and engage UK authorities for clarity and fairness,” he charged.

In addition to national efforts, he called on the African Union Commission, ECOWAS, and “relevant international human rights and migration,” bodies to closely monitor the UK’s proposed immigration changes and advocate for fairness and consistency. “Take a keen interest in this policy shift.”

Hon. Opoku acknowledged that policy reform is within the rights of any sovereign state, but insisted that changes must be just and should not disadvantage those already on a legal migration pathway.

“Fairness must be paramount. At the very least, all current visa holders should be grandfathered under the existing 5-year ILR arrangement to preserve trust, legal certainty, and the international image of the UK as a just and principled society”
Hon. Davis Ansah Opoku, MP for the Mpraeso

With thousands of Ghanaians potentially affected, the MP’s call raises the stakes for how Ghana and other African nations respond. At the centre of the debate is the future of skilled migrants who may now face prolonged uncertainty and stalled integration in the country they were encouraged to serve.