OFFSHORE projects in the UK are facing barriers due to the strict new immigration rules from the Home Office, a lawyer at a top international legal firm has warned.
The Tory government’s “extremely complex” visa rules risk putting further strain on the offshore wind sector, increasing project budgets and even delaying deadlines, according to Maria Gravelle, an immigration specialist at Pinsent Masons.
Gravelle said that the end to the Offshore Wind Worker Concession (OWWC) – which was brought in by the UK Government in 2017 but ended earlier in 2023 – was set to cause problems for the sector.
“Without an appropriate fix, the UK will become increasingly undesirable for skilled offshore workers and their employers,” she said.
The concession ended in April, and Gravelle has wanted that major disruption for the industry could follow, given that the majority of offshore crews are made up of non-British and Irish nationals https://www.thenational.scot/news/23846334.uk-visa-rules-pose-significant-risk-offshore-wind-industry/?fbclid=IwAR0t3p1EHKcOim7pMkbapq0_rwDmTIj7m9OeL1YDxTyKVOxBjNI947Ki3yg
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