Labour's Yvette Cooper to Promise 1,000 Extra UK Border Guards Paid For by £10 Visitor Charge

A Labour government would recruitment an extra 1,000 border guards by introducing a levy on visitors from the US and 55 other countries, Yvette Cooper is expected to announce.

The Shadow Home Secretary will say 5.5 million travellers from countries enjoying a "visa waiver" system of fast-track permission to enter the UK will face a charge of around £10 ($15, €12) per visit.

The move is expected to raise £45m a year, which would be used to fund the additional border staff.

Cooper is expected to say that the extra staff would also increase the speed of passport checks and "improve visitors' experience".

The Shadow Home Secretary will also say that her party needs to talk more about public concerns of immigration.

"Too often the debate about immigration becomes polarised and unhealthy," Cooper is expected to say.

"On the one hand, we now have an arms race of rhetoric involving the Tories and Ukip over immigration.

"Ukip are exploiting peoples' fears, fuelling anxiety and division, and David Cameron is racing to catch up.

"On the other hand, some people seem to think talking about immigration at all is a problem and they dismiss people's genuine concerns.

"Both sides shout at each other. Neither are right. And most people don't agree with either of them.

"In a shouting match, sensible voices are sometimes not heard.

"That's why Labour needs to set out practical reforms as part of a sensible debate on the changes we need."

The Home Secretary, Theresa May, has slammed Cooper's proposal.

The Conservative MP said the plan was "especially dishonest" and claimed the system would only raise enough money for 59 new staff members as it would only apply to 230,300 visitors.

"Even before Yvette Cooper's speech, this announcement has unravelled completely," May said.

"Labour are pretending they can hire 1,000 more immigration staff when their funding model would raise enough money for only 59 new staff members.

"And as their secret spending review contains plans to cut the Home Office budget, they are being especially dishonest."