Insider Media Limited

A Midlands law firm is planning to lobby a MP to limit “the negative effect” the economic migration cap is having on local businesses. Leamington Spa-based solicitors Wright Hassall said it has “several examples” of companies suffering because of the cap.

Solicitors at Wright Hassall said they will now contact Nadhim Zahawi, who is the MP for Stratford-on-Avon and also sits on the Parliamentary Select Committee for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), to discuss the issue.

The cap was introduced by the coalition government in July and restricts the number of skilled workers from outside the EU who can take up employment in this country.

Head of business immigration at Wright Hassall, Marian Dixon, said: “We are attempting to outline the implications this policy will have on the local economy.

“For many local businesses, recruiting highly skilled staff from overseas is an essential part of their people strategy and necessary for them to achieve the business growth they are aiming for.

“We are not talking about unskilled jobs here - it is top end graduates and highly skilled workers who have very specific skill sets, often not found in the UK, who are being affected.”

The cap was initially introduced on an interim basis before a permanent cap is brought in next April.

Dixon said: “Business secretary Vince Cable and the mayor of London Boris Johnson have both spoken out against the cap, stating that it will damage the economy across the UK if something isn’t done.

“Warwickshire also attracts overseas students to its world class universities. The new cap could discourage overseas students from coming to the region if they feel that they won’t be able to take up positions after graduating.

“This is an issue that has to be addressed sensibly. The introduction of the cap was not meant to have a detrimental effect on the economy but, invariably, that is what has happened.”