Labour's EU deal slammed as young Europeans may stay over 12 months under scheme

Sir Keir Starmer's Brexit 'reset' deal could see under-30s extend their stay in Britain for longer than a year. A youth mobility scheme mirroring already existing ones would allow young people to move to the UK for over a year, Nick Thomas-Symonds, the EU relations minister, said. The programme would be similar to that of Britain's existing deals with Australia, New Zealand and Japan.

Under these youth schemes, under-30s can move to the UK for up to two years, with some exceptions allowing for that length of stay to be extended. Countries within the EU are now reportedly demanding for a scheme which allows for 18-30-year-olds to move to the UK for more than 12 months, despite home secretary Yvette Cooper pushing for a year cap. If the scheme lasted longer than one year, it would contribute to the UK's immigration figures.

In May, the prime minister met with EU leaders to reset relations with the aim of signing a new deal next year. The two agreed a rough outline of a youth mobility programme during these talks.

"These are all subjects for the negotiations," Mr Thomas-Symonds told The Times, in response to being asked if the scheme will be limited to a year.

"I want to deliver the smart, controlled, balanced scheme that I agreed on in the common understanding."

The minister emphasised that the programme will mirror the UK's existing youth mobility deals with other countries, which, despite being capped, would be for more than 12 months.

Mr Thomas-Symonds said he was "not going to draw on a number" on the length of the new deal, but added the length of time would be "reciprocal" for Brits moving to EU countries.

"There's 13 of them that already exist, and it's in that context that we will be negotiating with the EU but the idea or suggestion that this is somehow freedom of movement is completely wrong," he said. "Nobody says we have freedom of movement with Andorra or Uruguay, with whom we already have youth mobility schemes."

Opposing political parties have condemned the scheme, labelling it as a "backdoor to free movement of people from the EU".

Reform UK deputy leader Richard Tice said at the time of the announcement: "This is not a government that can be trusted on Brexit. We cannot forget that this cabinet actively opposed Brexit and, in the case of Keir Starmer, actively campaigned to overturn the democratic decision of more than 17 million people."

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has also criticised the youth programme for potentially leading to an "uncapped migration scheme".