Migration Watch UK: News

Immigration 'No Answer' to Pension Time Bomb

The ‘myth’ that continued mass immigration is the answer to Britain’s pensions time bomb has been described as ‘totally dishonest’ by a new report out today.

The report from think tank Migrationwatch, finds that the present ratio of workers to pensioners could only be sustained by immigration at a level that would bring the population of the UK to 119 million by 2051 and 303 million by the end of the century -obviously absurd propositions.

'The pensions myth is just one in a long series of excuses that are trotted out in support of justifying the highest levels of immigration in our history, and each time they are examined in detail they fall apart as this study demonstrates,’ said Migrationwatch chairman, Sir Andrew Green.

>The report reviews the prospects for this ratio - known as the Potential Support Ratio (PSR)in the light of the most recent population projections from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). It finds that, with no migration at all the ratio would fall from today’s level of 4.15 to 1.9 in 2051. If net migration continues at 180,000 a year, as the ONS predicts, the PSR would drop to 2.4 in that year. However, this improvement in the support ratio would require a continuing conveyor belt of new immigrants resulting in an extra 13.6 million people with all that that implies in what is already one of the most crowded countries in Europe.

The report quotes four major studies which have dismissed this approach. Most recently, the House of Lords Select Committee on Economic Affairs concluded that "arguments in favour of high immigration to defuse the "pensions time bomb" do not stand up to scrutiny…"

'The Government have been running this dishonest argument for years. They have recently shaded it to talk about "helping" with the pensions problem but the reality is that any significant impact requires a huge and continuing increase in our population. They know it is no answer to the pensions problem and it is time they levelled with the British public and dropped this absurd argument,’said Sir Andrew.

Immigration curbs could have a decisive impact on the election result. Second only to the economy in key marginals

The extent to which immigration is likely to play a decisive role in the forthcoming election is spelled out in a new poll published today.

The poll, conducted by YouGov for Migrationwatch, was held in the vital 57 “marginal” seats which the Conservatives must win to gain a reasonable working majority; 43 are Labour held and 14 are held by the Liberal Democrats. The description below refers only to Labour held seats. The figures for Lib Dem held seats were very similar as shown in the tables.

The poll found that only the economy is more important to voters in these seats. When asked which issue was most likely to influence their vote, 36% of all voters in Labour held seats named the economy while 13% named immigration. Taxation and the NHS were next at 8% and 6 % respectively. Among those intending to vote Labour at the next election, 42% named the economy. Immigration and the NHS came equal second with 9%.

‘The polling numbers tell us yet again that immigration is a matter of deep concern to a large majority of the population and that they are likely to respond very positively to parties that seriously address them,’ said Migrationwatch chairman, Sir Andrew Green.

The poll found that 85% of people in Labour held marginal seats, were worried (with 49% very worried) about the population reaching 70 million by 2029 as official figures suggest. 75% of voters in these seats believe that the right level of net immigration to Britain was 50,000 a year or less (compared to 160,000 last year); indeed 49% wanted "one in, one out" or no immigration at all.

The poll also found that 44% in Labour held marginals would be more likely (23% much more likely) to vote Conservative if David Cameron were to say that a Conservative government would reduce immigration to 50,000 or below in order to keep the UK population below 70 million. Only 5% in these seats were less likely (2% much less likely) to vote Conservative in these circumstances. In Lib Dem held seats the response was almost the same.

In response to a similar question about Gordon Brown, 30% of voters in Labour marginals were more likely (13% much more likely) to vote Labour while 7% were less likely (2% much less likely) to vote for that party.

Other questions revealed a generally negative view of immigration. Asked whether they agreed that the current level of immigration has an adverse effect on local public services such as schools and hospitals, 72% in Labour held seats agreed (38% strongly) while 19% disagreed.

54% of voters in Labour held seats thought that recent immigration had been bad for the economy while only 19% thought it had been good (20% had no view). 59% in labour held seats thought that recent immigration had been bad for British society as a whole while 18% thought that it had been good (with 19% saying neither).

Said Sir Andrew: ‘These are very significant figures which show that the public are implacably opposed to a continuation of the mass immigration encouraged by this Government and are tired of having their concerns ignored. What they want are clear manifesto commitments to a dramatic reduction in the numbers.’

‘If the Tories are serious about immigration it will be in the manifesto’

Commentary

By Sir Andrew Green
Chairman of Migration Watch UK

The Times, London, 11 January, 2010

It was good to see an Archbishop give the political system a hefty kick last week. Lord Carey’s courageous intervention in support of the cross-party group called Balanced Migration certainly caught the attention of the public and gave a huge boost to their campaign to get immigration down close to the level of emigration.

He has moved the debate forwards. Instead of the usual accusations of racism there is now a more reasoned acceptance by the political class that current rates of immigration into Britain are unsustainable.

They are stressing our public services and straining our social cohesion. Now we have David Cameron saying that he does not support the idea of a 70 million population. He wants to see immigration kept within the tens of thousands. This is a significant development. He does not make stray remarks on this subject.

Indeed, he has hardly mentioned it since a major speech on population two years ago.

Nobody, least of all Mr Cameron, challenges the reality that immigrants have made a major contribution to our society. It is the recent scale of immigration that is the problem.

The latest population projections from the Office for National Statistics show that the UK’s population will reach 70 million in 20 years’ time and that just over two thirds of this increase will be because of immigration.

The Government claims that it will never happen but ONS forecasts are much better than the Met Office. Over the past 50 years their 20-year projections have been accurate to 2.5 per cent. Ministers also claim that immigration is coming down, partly due to their Points Based System. But the fall is almost entirely due to more East Europeans going home while three quarters of the PBS are student applications, which are riddled with fraud. The only means open to the Government to limit population is to limit immigration. If the Tory leader is serious he will put it into his party's election manifesto – and it will be hugely popular.

Vacancy for Director of Research

Migration Watch UK is an independent think tank chaired by Sir Andrew Green. It is recognised as the leading source for independent expert commentary on matters relating to migration into and out of the United Kingdom.

We are now seeking to appoint a full time Director of Research to work with Sir Andrew and the Executive Committee. The work of the Director involves researching and drafting a wide range of papers relating to all aspects of migration (such as those to be found on Migrationwatch's web site, excluding legal papers.

For further details visit Migrationwatch's web site.

Massive Increase in Family Visitors - Appeals Now Cost Tax Payers £1 Million a Week

Appeals against the decision of immigration officials to refuse family visas to enter the UK have increased eight fold since charges were abolished by the government in 2002 and are now running at over a thousand a week. They cost the taxpayer £1m a week, says a report from think-tank Migrationwatch.

Unlike ordinary visitors, "family visitors" have a right of appeal but the definition of "family" includes first cousins, uncles, aunts, nephews, nieces etc.

The report notes that there has been a huge increase in applications in recent years. Last year, just three countries - India, Pakistan and Nigeria - produced nearly 200,000 applications between them.

Said Migrationwatch Chairman, Sir Andrew Green. 'The government talk up their so-called tough points based system for work permits but leave gaping holes elsewhere. They have ducked the issue of family visitors for years. Obviously, family members should be able to visit relatives in Britain but such visits need to be properly regulated. There is a clear risk that, once here, some of these visitors will stay on illegally knowing that the chance of being removed is remote. Furthermore, in current financial circumstances, it is no longer acceptable that taxpayers should pay the appeal costs for foreign nationals wishing to visit Britain. The definition of a family visitor is so wide that it could include as many as 120 relatives of a middle aged person in Britain. It should be narrowed and charges which the government abolished in 2002 should be re-introduced.

Sir Andrew said that urgent changes were required:

a   Fees should be re-instated. There is no reason why the British tax payer should pay the appeal costs of foreign visitors.

b   The definition should be substantially tightened, at least until exit controls are in place. In particular, uncles, aunts, nephews, nieces, and first cousins should no longer be included. This would reduce the number of eligible relatives by up to 68.

c   The right to sponsor family visitors should be confined to British citizens. The relatives of others should apply as ordinary visitors.

d   In cases of doubt, there should be provision for sponsors to deposit a bond, if they so wished, to guarantee the departure of their relative.

Sir Andrew Green: 10 Reasons our Visa System is Rotten to the Core

Commentary in The Daily Mail 30 December, 2009

We got lucky - this time. Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the Nigerian graduate of University College London who tried to blow up a passenger aircraft over Detroit was turned down for a student visa when he applied for one in May.

He had been stupid enough to try to enrol in one of the 2,000 colleges the Government has at last realised are bogus.

But make no mistake, there are others who will succeed where he failed. Why?

Because the Government's new visa system is a disaster whose full results have yet to be seen. Yes, Abdulmutallab was stopped, but 370,000 student visas were issued last year.

How many of those were bogus students coming here to work on the black market? And how many were potential terrorists?

The simple answer is, we don't know and we may never know.

The new visa system requires a student to acquire 40 points before they are issued with a visa.

Thirty points are awarded automatically if he or she has a letter of acceptance from one of 3,000 educational institutions in Britain now licensed to issue such letters.

The other ten points are awarded if the student can show sufficient funds for the first year's fees and to live on during the year.

If they have the points, they get the visa. That's the theory. The reality, though, is that the system is rotten to the core. Here are ten reasons why. . .(See the full Daily Mail article)…

That day is not far off.

Student Visas 'A Massive Hole' in Border Controls as Numbers Top 1.5 Million in 8 Years

Nearly 3/4 of visas under the Points Based System are given to students

11/2 million students admitted in just 8 years

No checks on how many leave UK

Role of Immigration Officers severely undermined

 

A new report out today reveals that student visas are a massive loophole in our border controls. Nearly three quarters of visas issued under the Points Based System are given not to workers but students, under a system that is easily abused, badly administered and complex. Far from being “tough and flexible” as the Government claims, the new Points Based System has made a bad situation much worse.

 

The report by Migrationwatch shows that:

 

Nearly 1½ million student visas have been issued in the last 8 years. Students also account for a huge number of applications for extension. For example, between 2004 and 2007 they averaged about 140,000 per year…

 

See the Full Press Release

Service under strain as ‘Migrant a minute' registers with an NHS doctor

New research published today reveals the pressure that immigration is placing on the NHS.

The research, conducted by Migrationwatch, found that in 2007-8, 605,000 people who arrived from overseas registered with a GP in England and Wales – equivalent to one registration a minute, day and night, throughout the year. This was nearly 100,000 more than the inflow recorded in the International Migration Statistics for England and Wales for the same period. This suggests that short-term migrants (or illegal migrants) have also registered. Only 69,000 of the 605,000 were British people returning from a spell overseas.

The number of arrivals from overseas registering has increased by 50% in the past seven years but it is only in the last three years that registrations have exceeded the inflow of migrants. Of course migrants also leave. 333,000 left England and Wales in 2007-8 but this “churn” together with the additional population adds to the strains on the NHS.

These GP registration data are not precise as they are not compiled for statistical purposes. If anything, they understate the pressure of immigration on the National Health Service as those migrants who move practices within a year would not show up as arrivals from overseas. Furthermore, young men who make up a large proportion of migrants are known to be less likely to register with a GP than other groups.

There are no checks on the entitlement of those who seek to register with a GP, indeed doctors have discretion to register whoever they choose.

Five years ago, in May 2004, the Government issued proposals to exclude overseas visitors from eligibility to free NHS primary and medical services.The then Secretary of State promised “to ensure that the NHS is first and foremost for the benefit of residents in this country”. On 20 July 2009, five years later and on the last day of Parliament, the government issued proposals which included “to maintain GP discretion to determine registration to access free NHS primary care medical services along with the established principle that GPs may charge non-residents as private patients".

Commenting, Sir Andrew Green, Chairman of Migration Watch said:“This amounts to an open door to primary care which can also lead to access to secondary care. The government has been dithering while the NHS has been struggling to cope with the extra numbers resulting from mass immigration. In present financial circumstances it is surely obvious that we do not have the resources to cope with the extra ten million people now officially projected over the next 25 years – seven million as a result of immigration."

"Profile of Migration Watch"

"Alongside the TaxPayers' Alliance, MigrationWatch is one of Britain's most effective campaigning organisations.

"Its Chairman, Sir Andrew Green, has become Britain's most quoted authority on immigration questions."

See the full article

New poll shows seven out of ten want immigration slashed

75% worried about impact immigration is having on Britain,5% are pleased. Nearly 2/3rds of Labour voters want immigration sharply cut.

On the day that new Government statistics show that immigration in 2008 was 163,000, a new YouGov poll for Migrationwatch UK reveals the vast majority of the public are concerned about immigration and want it cut substantially so that the UK’s population does not hit 70 million in 2029, as official figures project.

To avoid the population hitting 70 million, net migration needs to be cut to 50,000 a year, a cut of 113,000 from the latest figure.

The YouGov poll found that 72% want it cut to 50,000 or less. Nearly two thirds of people (62%) who say they would vote Labour or Liberal Democrat want immigration cut to 50,000 or less.

The poll reveals the public’s lack of trust in the Government on an issue which most people find worrying. 77% of people disagree that the Government is open and honest about the scale of immigration into Britain: only a third (32%)of those who say they would vote Labour agree the Government is open and honest. 76% of people are worried about the impact that immigration is having on Britain. The region where concern is greatest is the North of England, where 80% are worried compared to just over two thirds in London. Just 5% of respondents said they were “pleased” about the impact immigration is having on Britain.

Sir Andrew Green, Chairman of Migrationwatch UK said:

‘The government claim that their policies are contributing to a fall in immigration and that our population will not reach 70 million but very few believe them, and rightly so. We are firmly on track for three million immigrants under this government yet their much trumpeted Points Based System only applies to one in five of those permitted to enter Britain and has no limits whatever. Today’s immigration figures confirm that unless we change direction, immigration will add another seven million to our population in the next 25 years – that’s equivalent to seven cities the size of Birmingham. With the prime minister yet again ruling out any cap on numbers at the CBI conference, the Government has demonstrated just how out of touch it is with the views of the British people.

'Clearly, immigration is still out of control. The time has come for politicians of all parties to level with the public and make a clear commitment to hold immigration well below 50,000 a year.’