Posted on Monday 6th February 2012 in News
The time has come to stop thinking of UK Immigration solely in terms of numbers and to focus on "how we can benefit from immigration", according to Immigration Minister Damian Green. In a speech to the Policy Exchange, a Conservative think-tank, Mr Green explained that this will be achieved by building “an immigration system which is smarter, more selective, more responsive; an immigration system that delivers what Britain needs, rather than what special interest groups demand.” This, he says, will ensure that “the right people are coming here; people who will benefit Britain, not just people who will benefit from Britain.”
Mr Green justified this decision by referring to a recent report by the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC), (see News) which tentatively concluded that there were up to 23 fewer jobs for British workers for every additional 100 working migrants coming from outside the EU:
"It [the report] supports a more selective approach to non-EU migration. The old assumption was that as immigration adds to GDP …. it is economically a good thing, and that therefore logically the more immigration the better, whatever the social consequences…….. It is not my view, or the view of the vast majority of the British people. The key insight of the MAC's work is that the measure of a successful immigration policy is how it increases the wealth of the resident population."
He continued: “The main point I make today is that everyone who comes here must be selected to make a positive contribution. That is at the heart of our commitment to reduce net migration. We have talked in the past about a Points Based System; in the future it will be more accurate to talk about a 'Contribution Based System'. Whether you come here to work, study or get married, we as a country are entitled to check that you will add to the quality of life in Britain.”
Unskilled workers and middle managers do not feature in the Green vision; however, “top of the range professionals, senior executives, technical specialists, entrepreneurs and exceptional artists and scientific talent,” will be welcomed, as will their partners and children providing they can speak English and “have sufficient financial means to be able to prosper.” The government has yet to decide what constitutes ‘sufficient’; the MAC has recommended that the sponsor’s income should be between £18,600 and £25,700.
Working migrants wanting to settle after five years will also have to satisfy a minimum income requirement, which will be fixed somewhere between £31,000 and £49,000.
Sir Andrew Green, chairman of the campaign group Migration Watch UK, said it was the "right approach" to try to get immigration down by being "much more selective. We need to consider the common good, not just the demands of special interest groups who benefit financially from immigration."
However, there is outrage from others that the moves will prevent recent migrants and British citizens alike from bringing non-EU spouses and partners into the UK. Habib Rahman of the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants, said: "The rights of British people to live with their loved ones here, and the splitting of families in the coalition government's reckless pursuit of lower net immigration figures are the human cost of this insane numbers game the Home Office is playing."
Critics also point out that most unskilled immigrants come from within the EU, which the government has no power to stop in the near to mid-future. Meanwhile, businesses looking to meet essential skill requirements from abroad may find the pool of available talent running dry as the restrictions on residency and family admission deter possible applicants.
A 'Contribution Based System' could also be extremely difficult to administer. Writing in the New Statesman, Matt Cavanagh, associate director of the Institute for Public Policy Research, points out the impossibility of identifying future entrepreneurs or nobel laureates: “The history of migration is one of talented, motivated people who often start from fairly humble beginnings, and spend years working hard and making sacrifices to better their lot: it can take many years to pay off, but when it does, it can do so spectacularly, for them and for the society which has offered them a home.”
Don Flynn, director of the Migrants’ Rights Network, highlights problems with the exceptional talent route, which was introduced last year, and may well be an indicator of what is ahead of the government in implementing this new policy. “According to insiders, five months into the scheme’s operation, a tiny minority (as few as 6) of visas had been issued as against the 1000 the scheme had allowed for.”
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