UK Parliament panel calls for British citizenship for foreign health workers

LONDON: An influential UK parliamentary panel on Monday called on the government to offer British citizenship to all foreign healthcare workers, including Indians, in recognition of their tireless work on the COVID-19 frontline of the country.

In an inquiry report on the Coronavirus pandemic, the cross-party House of Commons Home Affairs Committee also branded as unfair the exclusion of care workers and lower-paid National Health Service (NHS) staff from fee-free visa extensions announced for overseas NHS staff by UK Home Secretary Priti Patel recently.

For those who have worked tirelessly to combat COVID19, and who wish for it, the government should set out new arrangements to offer them British citizenship or permanent residency in recognition of the huge contribution they have made to the UK health and social care system during the COVID-19 crisis, the Committee said in its report.

We recommend that all NHS staff regardless of job role, pay grade or visa route and social care workers are offered the same fee-free oneyear visa extension. It cannot be right that, at a time when they are providing a vital and life-saving service for the country, non-uk health and care staff have to worry about their status and residency in the country, it notes.

The latest set of recommendations, which must be taken into consideration by the government, comes after British Prime Minister Boris Johnson had buckled under pressure from within Parliament and from doctors' groups to scrap the Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS) for all NHS staff and care workers.