Quizzes & Puzzles0 min ago
"no Ifs, No Buts"
The prime minister vowed to get net migration down to "tens of thousands" each year "no ifs, no buts" in a speech in 2011, adding "that's a promise we made to the British people and it's a promise we are keeping".
Another case of Cameron talking big to impress , but failing spectacularly.
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Another case of Cameron talking big to impress , but failing spectacularly.
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Mr Cameron has done many foolish things. His biggest error was to form a Coalition with The Cleggites, but second on the list must come this vow. No Prime Minister of the UK can control immigration whilst we retain our membership of the EU. Since he had no intention of renouncing the UK's membership in the lifetime of this Parliament (if at all) the promise should not have been made. He may have promised to stop the tide coming in twice a day on Southend beach.
Whilst he’s on the subject, Mr Cameron might do well to move away from the utterly misleading “net migration” figures which portray a completely false picture. Hidden beneath the headline that net immigration was “only” 298k last year is the fact that 624k people arrived to settle here in the 12 months to December. These people all need homes and it is highly unlikely that they will be able to afford many of the homes vacated by the 326k people who had emigrated from the UK. This is because the UK’s population is slowly being swapped over. People of high skills, high earning capacity or (in the case of required people) high net worth are mainly those leaving. They are being replaced by comparatively low skilled, low earners as this report explains:
http://
Among the highlights:
“One in ten of Britain’s best workers have been lured from the UK in a brain drain and been replaced by low skilled migrants, research has found. The country’s most highly skilled workers are emigrating because they can earn more money and enjoy better standards of living overseas, “
“But in their place the UK has attracted more than two million migrants with low numeracy skills,…”
“The UCL study also found that migrants in the UK are six times more likely to have never worked than those born here. Migrants are also more likely to be unemployed, with unemployed female migrants almost double the rate of British born. “
“Immigration has therefore had its biggest impact upon the bottom end of the numeracy skill distribution; it has led to a significant increase in the supply of low skilled workers."
“…one in ten highly skilled British citizens now lives overseas.”
“…immigration added some 2.4 million people to the UK population with low numeracy skills. “
So it is not only the increase in population (which places huge strains on housing, health, education and social care) which is a concern. It is the way the population is slowly but very surely seeing this exchange. This is what large scale immigration to the UK has brought. Bright and skilled people are leaving (meaning we have difficulty filling vacancies and will probably have to recruit from abroad) and in their place low skilled people are arriving to undertake low skilled jobs. This means, of course, that those already here who may only be able to do those jobs are competing with large numbers from abroad.
The “Net migration” figures are bad enough on their own account, but coupled with the features I have highlighted above, the figures surrounding inward migration paint a truly disturbing picture.
http://
Among the highlights:
“One in ten of Britain’s best workers have been lured from the UK in a brain drain and been replaced by low skilled migrants, research has found. The country’s most highly skilled workers are emigrating because they can earn more money and enjoy better standards of living overseas, “
“But in their place the UK has attracted more than two million migrants with low numeracy skills,…”
“The UCL study also found that migrants in the UK are six times more likely to have never worked than those born here. Migrants are also more likely to be unemployed, with unemployed female migrants almost double the rate of British born. “
“Immigration has therefore had its biggest impact upon the bottom end of the numeracy skill distribution; it has led to a significant increase in the supply of low skilled workers."
“…one in ten highly skilled British citizens now lives overseas.”
“…immigration added some 2.4 million people to the UK population with low numeracy skills. “
So it is not only the increase in population (which places huge strains on housing, health, education and social care) which is a concern. It is the way the population is slowly but very surely seeing this exchange. This is what large scale immigration to the UK has brought. Bright and skilled people are leaving (meaning we have difficulty filling vacancies and will probably have to recruit from abroad) and in their place low skilled people are arriving to undertake low skilled jobs. This means, of course, that those already here who may only be able to do those jobs are competing with large numbers from abroad.
The “Net migration” figures are bad enough on their own account, but coupled with the features I have highlighted above, the figures surrounding inward migration paint a truly disturbing picture.
I must echo the sentiments of New Judge and his typically thoroughly researched posts.
Mr Cameron had no business putting a target figure on immigration when his government has no direct control over it.
I know that Labour will make hay out of it, but that should not detract from the fact that he has gone badly awry here - not only a promise he could not keep - and should have known that - but a promise made in such unequivocal terms.
And with an election coming up ...
Mr Cameron had no business putting a target figure on immigration when his government has no direct control over it.
I know that Labour will make hay out of it, but that should not detract from the fact that he has gone badly awry here - not only a promise he could not keep - and should have known that - but a promise made in such unequivocal terms.
And with an election coming up ...
And jim makes a very salient point.
The figures show that in fact far more people arrived from outside the EU (292k) than arrived from other EU countries (251k). The government is supposed to have control over who enters the UK from outside the EU. The pledge to reduce net migration to "tens of thousands" could have been met had the influx from outside the EU been restricted to a sensible level.
The figures show that in fact far more people arrived from outside the EU (292k) than arrived from other EU countries (251k). The government is supposed to have control over who enters the UK from outside the EU. The pledge to reduce net migration to "tens of thousands" could have been met had the influx from outside the EU been restricted to a sensible level.
250 thousand is a city the size of _________?
And this is -per year- let's not forget.
_____ new sewage-treatment works have been built in the past _____ years.
Britain's metropolitan sewers were built when we had the wealth of an empire to draw on. We are now a pizpot little island, off Europe, trillions in debt. They will, nevertheless need to be renovated, starting in 20__?
Answers, on a postcard, please, to David Cameron, 10 Downing Street, by May 1st.
And this is -per year- let's not forget.
_____ new sewage-treatment works have been built in the past _____ years.
Britain's metropolitan sewers were built when we had the wealth of an empire to draw on. We are now a pizpot little island, off Europe, trillions in debt. They will, nevertheless need to be renovated, starting in 20__?
Answers, on a postcard, please, to David Cameron, 10 Downing Street, by May 1st.
One day, just possibly, politicians will learn that we can never control EU migration as to all intents we are all just one very large country. The sooner we accept that and start working to get the best out of it the better.
Does anyone know if the USA has/ had similar problems with migration from the poor states to the richer ones? It would be interesting to know and understand how it was / is resolved.
Does anyone know if the USA has/ had similar problems with migration from the poor states to the richer ones? It would be interesting to know and understand how it was / is resolved.
Of course, time was when the Land of Opportunity, which people all over the world dreamed of emigrating to was the US of A. Except, perhaps those east of the Iron Curtain, who had been conditioned to distrust them. These days, much of the Muslim world has undergone similar conditioning; Africans see Europe as easier to reach and a place where they're less likely to get shot by (mainly white) police and eastern europeans have done their homework and worked out where their skills are remunerated best. Voom! They're all headed this way.
@mummybee
Well that's the most worrying thing - "just saying what people want to hear". If they've served any purpose at all is that they've flushed these people out into the open, where others can see them.
Farage was on TV this morning arguing that Enoch made the whole debate a toxic issue so it was swept under the carpet for 30-40 years and "at least there's now a debate" about the issue. That's all very well but you'd have thought old prejudices would have died out after that much time had passed.
I've never felt personaly impacted by immigration in the past but I must admit to having been sheltered by being remote from London for a couple of decades. The area is rural so isn't attracting any noticeable influx. The current debate has brought the scale of the situation to my attention in a way that continued sweeping under the carpet would have prevented.
It's not yet sedition but it is stirring up discontentment.
Well that's the most worrying thing - "just saying what people want to hear". If they've served any purpose at all is that they've flushed these people out into the open, where others can see them.
Farage was on TV this morning arguing that Enoch made the whole debate a toxic issue so it was swept under the carpet for 30-40 years and "at least there's now a debate" about the issue. That's all very well but you'd have thought old prejudices would have died out after that much time had passed.
I've never felt personaly impacted by immigration in the past but I must admit to having been sheltered by being remote from London for a couple of decades. The area is rural so isn't attracting any noticeable influx. The current debate has brought the scale of the situation to my attention in a way that continued sweeping under the carpet would have prevented.
It's not yet sedition but it is stirring up discontentment.
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