[citation needed] The act was passed in just three days, partly due to the support and fierce drive of then-Home Secretary, James Callaghan.

[2] One result of the Act was to stop the permanent migration of workers from the overseas members of the Commonwealth of Nations, unless they met certain tests.

[7] The rules proposal drew criticism from Conservative Party backbenchers, because it formally implemented a limit of six months of leave to enter as a visitor for white "Old Commonwealth" citizens who were "non-patrial" (did not have Right of Abode under the 1971 act, generally because they did not have a parent or grandparent from the UK).

[7] Minutes from a Cabinet meeting the next day conclude that "anti-European sentiment" among backbenchers, who instead preferred "Old Commonwealth" migration to the UK, was at the core of the result.

[7] By August 2018, the Immigration Rules stood at almost 375,000 words, often so precise and detailed that the service of a lawyer are typically required to navigate them.

[8] The England and Wales Law Commission began to make recommendations for clearer rules to be adopted.