UK: Immigration's blairing at polls

Immigration's blairing at polls
URMI A GOSWAMI TIMES NEWS NETWORK
[ WEDNESDAY, MAY 04, 2005 12:34:23 AM]


NEW DELHI: Immigration continues to dominate the run up to the election day in the UK. Nearly a fourth of British voters consider rising immigration as their top-most concern, ahead of healthcare or education. It then doesn’t take rocket science to work out why Labour and Tory politicians are spending so much time on immigration-related subjects. A poll conducted in February by Market & Opinion Research International (MORI), Britain’s largest independently-owned market research company, had found that 23% of those polled said immigration and asylum was the most important issue facing Britain at the moment. It was among the top two issues for 40% of those polled. The situation hasn’t changed closer to election day. A recent poll by MORI for BBC Asian Network shows that 60% of those questioned said there were already too many immigrants in Britain. Next to asylum issues and illegal immigrants, economic migrants are the focus. Fact is their numbers have been on the rise. There were about 60,000 economic migrants a year in the early 1980s. At present, there about 150,000 a year. Immigrants were 7% of the UK workforce in 1984, in 2004 the proportion had risen to 10.5%. In a bid to corner the voter, all three parties have promised to tighten restrictions on economic migration. The Conservative Party has called for annual refugee and immigrant quotas, and bonds for temporary workers. The Labour Party will reduce asylum numbers by tougher rules on settlement. It has already introduced skills-based points system for permanent immigrants. While the Liberal Democrats have called for quotas for non-EU workers based on skill set.
What makes this focus on economic migrants interesting is that to the average voter, immigration issues are being translated in terms of what it means vis-a-vis housing, school places or crime. The immigration ante had been upped by the Tories. By and large, the British populace is dissatisfied with the Labour government’s performance on the issue. As such on immigration, the dominant view is broadly right-wing. According to polls, conducted late last year painted a worrisome picture: the British public are broadly anti-immigration. Interestingly, during the last elections it was healthcare and education that were considered to be central issues. It is this shift in focus that prompted the Blair government to opt for an Australian style point system. This after saying it wouldn’t opt for such a system that would be restrictive. Under the new Australian-style points system, migrant workers will need to gain a certain number of points based on the nature and level of skills and experience to gain the right to work in the UK. Further, to present a tough stance on the issue, a new visa fingerprinting system to fingerprint all immigrants on visas at ports of entry by 2008. An identity cards will be introduced for all foreign migrants who will be in the UK for more than three months. Only immediate family members of migrants will be allowed to enter the UK. This will mean restrictions on dependants of migrants bringing in further dependants.
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