Should UK regions be able to offer region-specific work permits if free movement from the EU goes after Brexit?
This is a really interesting question – particularly for areas in the UK where the population is ageing faster than elsewhere (Scotland for example) or for those that just think they need a constant supply of cheap labour to keep the show on the road (London, where EU nationals make up 25% of the workforce, for example).
“Yes” is also a perfectly good answer. In the Times today, Mark Littlewood of the Ibnsitute of Economic Affairs suggests that “devolved authorities should be able to issue their own work permits.” Get one for London and it would come with an L on it. Get one for Scotland and it would come with an S on it. You’d then be entitled to live and work in those regions regardless of your nationality.
There’s precedent for this in Australia and in Quebec, as Michael Glackin points out in the Scottish Sunday Times, and the Centre for Economics and Business Research points out in a new report.
In Australia, regional governments can directly recruit workers on a points system and in Quebec there is a devolved policy that allows the region to recruit skilled migrants in any sector. There is more on this here.
Overall it seems like a perfectly reasonable way of dealing with a lot of the things Scotland and London are worried about around Brexit. It also works in the generally successful economies of Canada and Australia. So it is well worth Theresa May thinking about properly.