On one hand the Immigration Skills Charge is very successful, raising over £2 billion. On the other hand, the Charge remains totally unheralded and there is no evidence that the money has been used for its intended purpose.
If the EU ultimately did pull this off in a way that impacted the numbers irregularly entering Europe, it is unlikely that a UK government – of whatever persuasion – would be disappointed.
The Government can now at last claim consistency, and at least enter the next election arguing, with more of a straight face, that it has tried to deliver migration.
Perhaps it is because politically the Conservatives now have little to lose that Badenoch can ask important questions about what the protections, impacts and trade-offs inherent in different international law obligations mean for the UK’s sovereignty and national policies