Active SC Clearance Loop

There is a strange loop forming in the UK cleared tech market.

The official path says candidates can be sponsored for SC clearance if the role requires it.

The real path says something else. "Active SC only." That phrase is now everywhere.

Already-cleared contractors get recycled in a loop. They move from contract to contract regardless of fit, because they're immediately deployable. Candidates who aren't cleared get shut out. Demand keeps increasing. But the talent pool doesn't grow. It just spins.

Speed has become more important than access. Risk reduction has become more important than talent development.

And "active SC only" has become the shortcut everyone follows, even if it slowly narrows the market it's supposed to serve.