Reform UK leader Richard Tice has announced plans for an “employer immigration tax” in a bid to reduce what he called the country’s “addiction to cheap overseas labour”.
Tice said Reform’s policy would see businesses employing “non-British passport holders” pay National Insurance of 20 per cent, versus the standard rate of 13.8 per cent.
He said the 45 per cent increase was a “perfectly reasonable premium to pay” and claimed the measure would raise “over £20bn over one electoral cycle”.
Exemptions, he said, would be in place for “very small business of five people and under” and for healthcare and social care, which Tice described as “the right thing to do”.
It comes the day after the British Chamber of Commerce (BCC) launched its five-point business manifesto, which called for “improved relations with the European Union to cut the costs for business”.
While the Conservative Party has increasingly been forced to battle Reform UK to win back right-wing voters on issues including immigration and border security, amid continued debate over the Rwanda policy.
The announcement came at a press conference in central London this afternoon, which was also attended by honorary Reform UK president and GB News presenter Nigel Farage.
Announcing their flagship migration policy, Tice said: “This drug [cheap overseas labour] is being pushed on every street corner by the Labour Party and by the Tories.
“They believe that this drug, this addiction, is good for the British economy. Let me tell you today it’s not. What we need is a cure to this addiction and the cure is an employer immigration tax.”
He added: “It’s actually very straightforward. If you want to employ non-British passport holders then we think it’s perfectly reasonable you pay a premium on National Insurance.
“This will change people’s thoughts and behaviour. We believe over one electoral cycle, this employer immigration tax will raise over £20bn depending on how quickly employers adjust their recruitment processes.”
Farage also told reporters the policy was “bold” and “innovative”, and said: “I can hear the multinationals wailing already because we have become addicted to cheap, foreign labour.”
He claimed “nothing slippery (Prime Minister Rishi) Sunak says is believable” and added that when he hears Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer, he “zones out”.
And the former UKIP leader, who has declined to stand as a candidate for Reform, described the overall campaign trail as “dull”.
Reform UK are not widely expected to secure any seats at the election on July 4, despite achieving around 10-12 per cent in the polls, due to vote distribution under the first-past-the-post system.