‘Sign of weakness’: Home Office U-turn on visa salary threshold divides Tories

Rightwing factions criticise decision to raise minimum salary to £29,000 in spring, rather than £38,700

Rightwing Conservatives have expressed concern at the decision to U-turn on more than doubling the minimum salary needed for British nationals bringing foreign relatives to the UK, in yet another sign of the party’s continued splits on migration.

In a surprise and low-key announcement on Thursday evening, the Home Office said the threshold would still rise significantly from the current £18,600, but to £29,000 instead of the £38,700 initially announced earlier this month.