How much value do you put on your loved ones care?

Ignore the factless, xenophobic voices. Immigration is vital for the UK. Millions of lives depend on it.

First published in February 2020.

When I was 16 I wanted to be a nurse.

I worked weekends in a care home to gain experience while I did my A levels.

I ended up working in a challenging behaviour unit in a learning disabilities hospital. I loved it. I worked with people from across the world.

I did my A levels and took a year off to gain more experience.

I cared for offenders. I cared for people on psychiatric holds. I learnt so much. I went on to do my nursing qualification at Leeds University. I learnt more and qualified.

I worked in A&E, dealing with mental health patients. I loved my work and the difference I made.

I left nursing after a while but I still worked the odd shift to keep up my registration. I worked again in care homes.

PMP XTRA

This week's @theipaper cartoon#PritiPatel #Immigration pic.twitter.com/zKzbdVKdaO
— Ben Jennings (@BJennings90) February 21, 2020

I cared for your parents, your grandparents.

Not bad for an immigrant from Donegal. I know that the Irish have an exception in the new immigration laws. We earnt that.

But the point still stands.

Immigration is vital. The UK cannot function without it.

I wouldn’t have met the threshold. How much value do you put on your loved ones care? One immigrant? 2, or 10, or 100?

Immigration is vital. Lives depend on it.🔷

[This piece was first published as a Twitter thread and turned into the above article on 21 February 2020, with the author’s consent, with the purpose of reaching a larger audience. It has been minorly edited and corrected. | The author of the tweets writes in a personal capacity.]