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Labour will not adopt a tougher stance on immigration despite the growing pressure from UKIP in its Northern heartlands, the new shadow home secretary has said.

Diane Abbott insisted the party must continue to extol “the benefits” of immigration because polls show most Labour voters support it.

A survey published this week by polling guru Prof John Curtice found 70% of people want limits on the number of people moving here from the EU.

But Ms Abbott said: “If Labour were to adopt a more hostile stance in relation to immigration, it would alienate more of its current supporters than it would please them.

“Labour cannot outdo UKIP or this Government on immigration. It should not try.

“It should pursue its own principled immigration policies which recognises the large benefits of immigration, along with some costs.”

(Image: PA)

Speaking on Sky News her frontbench colleague Clive Lewis, the new shadow business secretary, said the main immigration control he personally favoured would be to force new arrivals to be part of a trade union.

He suggested this would forced bosses either to pay foreign workers a proper wage, or instead hire people from the UK.

“What you’ve got to understand is that immigration into this country - it’s been a net benefit, it’s about who benefits,” he said.

“I personally think that the restrictions should be that if companies want to bring in people from abroad, those people should have to belong to a trade union.

“And I think that that will in turn mean that companies will want to begin to take people more often from this country.”

(Image: PA)

Their comments come after Jeremy Corbyn made clear following his re-election as leader that Labour will not be shifting on immigration - despite warnings from some Northern MPs that support for UKIP is growing.

His spokesman told the Labour Party conference in September that Mr Corbyn is “not concerned” with the total number of people moving to the UK, but instead focused on stopping wage exploitation.

Former Labour frontbencher Michael Dugher, the MP for Barnsley East, told Politics Home he fears the party’s position means it is headed for “disaster”.

“Immigration has delivered many benefits - but to deny that unskilled immigration has put a strain on many of our traditional communities is wilfully naive,” he said.

“To ignore the fact that immigration is a major and legitimate concern for many traditional Labour voters - and importantly those we would like to vote Labour in future - is also out of touch.

“People like Diane just need to get out more.”

Gloating Tories said they believe Labour are “out of touch” with voters across the country.

Craig Tracey MP, a member of the Commons business committee, said: “It is astonishing that the Shadow Business Secretary does not care how many people come to this country, as long as they are a member of a trade union.

“It is clearer than ever that Labour are completely out of touch with working people.”