Net annual immigration rises to 212,000 February 27, 2014 There has been a 38 per cent increase in net flow of long-term migrants to 212,000 in the year ending September 2013, an increase from the 154,000 seen in the previous year, according to the Office for National Statistics. 532,000 people immigrated to the UK in the year ended September 2013, a slight increase from [...]
Why this EU commissioner is fighting for open immigration February 26, 2014 European commissioner Laszlo Andor has come out fighting against the Swiss referendum decision to restrict the free movement of European citizens. On 9 February, the Swiss backed strict quotas for EU immigration by a wafer thin majority of 50.34 per cent on a healthy turnout. The commissioner's speech comes only a few weeks after fresh [...]
EU migrants forced to prove weekly income for benefits February 19, 2014 EU MIGRANTS will have to prove they are earning at least £149 per week for three months before they can claim state help, the work and pensions secretary has announced. Iain Duncan Smith said the change will come into force in March. The government is seeking to strengthen EU rules on freedom of movement, which [...]
City Matters: Put the immigration debate on a factual footing – or our economy will suffer February 2, 2014 EUROPE is back in the headlines, with immigration and David Cameron’s meeting with French President Francois Hollande pushing the politically-divisive issue to the top of the agenda. We regularly read that European immigration and new EU regulation are a problem. But if we are to secure the best future for the UK, we must accurately [...]
Migrant benefit reform: Doing the right thing for all of the wrong reasons January 20, 2014 YESTERDAY saw the government announce the latest in a line of restrictions on the benefits immigrants can claim. New jobless EU migrants will be denied access to housing benefit from April, and will only be able to claim Jobseeker’s Allowance for six months unless they have a “genuine” chance of work. This comes on top [...]
Watchdog’s warning: cutting migration will push up national debt January 14, 2014 CUTTING net immigration to below 100,000 per year will push up Britain’s national debt by around 20 per cent over the coming decades, the spending watchdog warned yesterday. Immigrants tend to be of working age and so do not cost the UK much on education, and will typically pay many years of tax before claiming [...]
Clegg: I would support benefit ban for migrants January 12, 2014 NICK CLEGG would support the principle of a two-year ban on EU migrants claiming benefits, he indicated yesterday. Speaking to the BBC’s Andrew Marr, the Deputy Prime Minister said: “I’m up for establishing a clear principle that says the freedom to move around the European Union to look for work is one thing, but it’s [...]
No benefits for immigrants for five years – Ukip January 7, 2014 NIGEL Farage has called for a ban on immigrants receiving benefits in the UK until they have been resident for at least five years, extending the current three-month period during which they cannot claim. The Ukip leader added that preserving British society and creating jobs for young people are more important than boosting GDP. “The [...]
Business groups pan migrant crackdown January 6, 2014 BUSINESS leaders have condemned Ed Miliband’s plan to prevent employers paying low wages to migrant workers, calling it “misguided,” after a day in which both the Prime Minister and leader of Ukip Nigel Farage also toughened their rhetoric on migrant labour. The Labour leader vowed to close an opt-out allowing employment agencies, which can employ [...]
Net migration climbs as fewer people exit UK November 28, 2013 THE NUMBER of people leaving the UK to live in other countries has reached the lowest level in over a decade, driving increases in net migration upward again. The rise in net migration had slowed since 2011, but rose in the year to the end of June, up by 182,000. In the year to the end [...]