Tory MPs warned Rishi Sunak that the issue of immigration is “do or die” for the party after new figures showed net migration hit a record level of 745,000 last year.
The New Conservatives highlighted how the Tories promised to reduce net migration at the 2019 general election but numbers have since gone up.
The group, made up of Tory MPs elected since the Brexit referendum, said: “The word ‘existential’ has been used a lot in recent days but this really is ‘do or die’ for our party.
“Each of us made a promise to the electorate. We don’t believe that such promises can be ignored.”
Urging for action, they added: “The Government must propose, today, a comprehensive package of measures to meet the manifesto promise by the time of the next election.
“We will assess any such package and report publicly on whether it will meet the promise made to the electorate.
“The Prime Minister, Chancellor, and new Home Secretary must show that they stand by the promises on which we were elected to Parliament. We must act now.”
The group pointed out they set out a plan earlier this year to reduce net migration.
They said: “Sadly, the proposals that we put forward have been largely ignored.
“Today, we see the result of these conscious decisions by Government. Net migration has not only failed to fall since 2019, it has trebled. A million new people from abroad were added to the UK population last year.
“Across every single category of immigration, numbers are on the rise. We cannot blame exceptional circumstances; this is a consistent trend. It has been caused directly by the policy decisions of this Government. And it has gone on for far too long.
“For the Treasury, there may be reasonable arguments for increasing immigration – because more people translates into more recorded economic activity – but the truth is the public won’t accept it.
“Our voters can tell the difference between real economic growth that improves the standard of living for ordinary households, and the phantom ‘growth’ that importing ever more people puts on a Treasury spreadsheet.
“High rates of immigration depress wages, reduce investment in skills and technology, put unsustainable pressure on housing and public services, and threaten community cohesion.”
It comes after revised estimates from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed net migration to the UK in the year to December 2022 was higher than previously thought, up from 606,000 to 745,000.
The figure for the year to June 2023 is estimated to be 672,000.
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