Tuesday, October 14, 2025

The home secretary has shown a single-minded determination to stop the boats since her appointment last month, so it is disappointing to see her diverted into recycling one of the oldest and most pointless headlines in the "immigration crackdown" cuttings book. 

Immigrants will need A-level standard English to work in Britain, she announced today. 

Immigrants' fluency in English is not the problem. Almost all immigrants are keen to speak the language, which is in fact one of the "pull factors" attracting people to Britain.  

The Home Office estimates that the new test will result in a decrease of between 400 and 1,500 visa applicants next year. Against a background of falling legal immigration, this is neither here nor there. 

The problem is the small boats crossing the Channel. Shabana Mahmood should skip the headline gimmicks and stay focused on dealing with that.

In which year was the iPhone launched?

Answer at the bottom of today's email 

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I don't know why we didn't implement Rwanda. Why did we go to the country before we got that done? That was a mistake

Boris Johnson attacks Rishi Sunak 

Quiz answer: 2007

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