Energy minister backs Mahmood on migration reform after days of questions

Energy minister Miatta Fahnbulleh said on Thursday that she fully supports Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood and the government's position on migration reform. She also said she had not answered questions clearly the day before.

The questions concerned government plans to change how long migrants must wait before gaining permanent residence in the UK, which is the right to live in the country indefinitely. In an interview on Wednesday, Fahnbulleh was asked repeatedly whether she supported the plans. The government wants to double the period for most migrant workers to qualify, from five years to 10. For refugees, the wait could be 20 years.

Fahnbulleh said it is absolutely right that people should have to make a contribution to the country in order to earn citizenship.

On Thursday she told reporters she had not explicitly answered those questions because she had told herself she would "never lie". At a lunch with political reporters, she said that one of three promises she made to herself on entering politics was to never lie. She said this had led to awkward moments, including an interview with Sophy Ridge on Sky the previous day.

Fahnbulleh also addressed a remark she made on Thursday. She said it was meant to be a light-hearted, self-deprecating comment, and that she had not got it right. She said it had not come across as she intended.