article_snippet: But in 1997 the only reference was that ‘every country must have firm control over immigration and Britain is no exception’.
article_snippet: Once settled in the UK, migrants were entitled to apply for citizenship and vote in general elections.
article_snippet: Labour also decided not to strip voting rights from one million people from the Commonwealth living in Britain who do not have citizenship.
article_snippet: Under arcane rules, Labour can register on the electoral roll as long as Labour have an address in Britain.
article_snippet: The rules for letting non-EU workers into the UK were relaxed, allowing skilled migrants to come in without first having a job offer.
article_snippet: One of the new Government’s first acts in 1997 was to abolish a rule that placed the burden on foreign spouses to prove that it was not the primary purpose of foreign spouses marriage to a British citizen or settled person to obtain residency in the UK.
article_snippet: In 1998 Labour abandoned the system of logging people out of the country.
article_snippet: In 1997 17,000 citizens of the New Commonwealth departed – the number of marriage visas – 32,200 fell to 10,000 in 1998 when the checks were scrapped.