Downing Street refused to commit to a flagship immigration policy set out by the home secretary after former deputy prime minister Angela Rayner criticised the proposal in a major challenge to Sir Keir Starmer’s authority.
The prime minister’s official spokesperson said the government is “considering responses” to a Home Office consultation into the proposals to reform indefinite leave to remain (ILR), repeatedly refusing to reaffirm Sir Keir’s commitment to the policy, which would extend the length of time migrants must wait for permanent residence.
It is understood that the consultation was primarily looking at how the changes to ILR would apply to those already in the UK – the aspect of the policy towards which Ms Rayner primarily directed her criticism.
The former deputy prime minister on Tuesday said Shabana Mahmood’s planned changes to ILR for people already living in the UK would be a “breach of trust”, branding them “un-British” and “bad policy”, which has intensified infighting between factions in the Labour Party.
Ms Mahmood’s immigration reforms – which include a raft of hardline measures aimed at discouraging asylum seekers and making it easier to remove those who have no right to remain in the country – were rolled out to much fanfare last year.
The reforms are a central pillar of the government’s agenda and form a key part of Labour’s plan to win back votes from Reform UK amid devastating approval ratings and questions over the direction of Sir Keir’s administration.
But asked whether the government is still committed to the reforms after Ms Rayner’s criticism on Tuesday, the prime minister’s spokesman said: “Labour’s always been the party that celebrates the contribution migrant communities have made to our national story.
“In the four years before the election we saw record levels of immigration. In the manifesto we promised to deliver a fair and properly managed immigration system.
“We are considering responses to the Home Office consultation, and will respond in line with our principles and values.”
Pressed again, he said: “We are considering responses to the Home Office consultation, and will respond in due course”. The consultation closed in February, it is understood.
Later, the government sought to clarify the situation, with a spokesperson saying its “position has not changed”.
“The government will double the route to settlement from five to ten years.
“As announced in November, we are consulting to apply this change to those in the UK today but have not received settled status.
“We are currently reviewing the 200,000 responses and will outline our response in due course”, the spokesperson added.
But the row, sparked by Ms Rayner’s comments on Tuesday night, has already seen major divisions within the Labour Party.
Rayner was backed by Andy Burnham, who told BBC Radio 4: “I certainly know where she’s coming from and the party would always do well to listen to what Angela has got to say.”
Another MP said: “Angela’s just saying what most people in the party think.”
But allies of the home secretary launched an attack on the former deputy prime minister, with one telling The Independent: “Her [Ms Rayner’s] judgement is well off on this issue, especially for someone who is on course to lose her seat to Reform.”
Others on the left suggested that her time in Sir Keir’s government meant they did not trust her on immigration.
One MP said they were “not convinced” by her speech, while another added that Ms Rayner’s speech contained “very little substance, no analysis, no sense of what change looks like or how.”
A third MP wondered if she is even a serious leadership contender given the tax problems which forced her to resign.
“Reform MPs get away with being investigated for tax fraud, Labour MPs do not. That’s not a complaint, just how it is and, to an extent, I am glad we’re held to a higher standard”, they said.
Speaking on Tuesday, Ms Rayner said that for those who came to Britain on the understanding that they could stay if they worked in sectors where they were needed, obeyed the law and paid their taxes, changing the rules “pulls the rug” from under them.
“That would be not just bad policy but a breach of trust. The people already in the system, who made a huge investment, now fear for their future, they do not have stability and do not know what will happen.
“We cannot talk about earning a settlement if we keep moving the goalposts, because moving the goalposts undermines our sense of fair play. It’s un-British,” the MP for Ashton-under-Lyne said.
The Tories seized upon the government’s refusal to commit to the policy, warning that if ministers water down the plans “it will show they are too weak to protect our country’s borders”.
Shadow home secretary Chris Philp said: “If Keir Starmer is too weak to get his backbenchers to vote for this, he can rely on our votes to get this through parliament. We will always put the national interest first.
“If Keir Starmer and Shabana Mahmood water down these plans it will show they are too weak to protect our country’s borders – because they are scared of Angela Rayner and their own backbenchers.”
In her intervention on Tuesday, Ms Rayner claimed that the Labour Party has come to represent “the establishment, not working people” and called for a change of course.
She argued that Labour is “running out of time” to deliver change and cannot “go through the motions in the face of decline”.
Responding, Sir Keir’s political spokesman said: “The prime minister shares an impatience to deliver the change people voted for. We’re making progress, restoring stability to the economy, cutting NHS waiting lists and, next month, we will begin lifting half a million children (out of poverty).
“He’s firmly on the side of working people.”
Sir Keir and Ms Rayner maintain a good working relationship, the spokesman insisted, and reiterated that “he would like to see her return to the Cabinet”. But he said he was not aware of them having spoken in the past week.
