Quotas on immigration would be a disaster for London’s tech startups November 12, 2014 Political debates over the benefits and drawbacks of immigration will no doubt rage on for years to come. But while the opposing sides pick apart the evidence over the impact of migrants on the public purse, one thing is clear: London’s tech ecosystem faces a very significant skills shortage. Government should be doing all it [...]
European Court of Justice rules states can refuse welfare to immigrants but how many “benefits tourists” are there really? November 11, 2014 The European Court of Justice has ruled member states are free to exclude EU citizens from other nations who move to their country for the sole purpose of claiming benefits. The news was music to the ears of those in Downing Street, who have been seeking to crack down on so-called benefits tourism. So long [...]
From overtime holiday pay and immigration to the EU bill and John Lewis’ Christmas advert: 10 things we learned this week November 8, 2014 1. Businesses are going to have to start giving workers holiday pay for overtime. But it's quite complicated and likely to be subject to a few appeals so it's still a bit up in the air. 2. John Lewis is the king of Christmas adverts. That's not just our view, but the view of [...]
UK immigration: Prime Ministers from Finland, Norway and Sweden warn David Cameron not to limit free movement of EU migrants November 7, 2014 NULL
The immigration debate has been poisoned – and the facts wilfully ignored November 5, 2014 This weekend, people across Europe will commemorate the twenty-fifth anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. They will celebrate the end of communism in Europe, the liberation of millions from totalitarianism, and the opening up of a continent to free movement between nations. In Britain, however, the politics of migration has become grubbier. Everybody [...]
Cost of immigration to the UK: EU migrants add more to the economy than UK citizens November 5, 2014 While Prime Minister David Cameron continues to press for tighter controls against the arrival of EU migrants in the UK, new statistics suggest EU workers are in fact some of the biggest contributors to our economy. By analysing migrants' share of all public services costs and comparing it to their economic contribution between 1995 [...]
EU migrants contribute £20bn to UK economy and are more likely to work than Brits November 4, 2014 Immigrants from the rest of the EU are more likely to be employed than the average worker born in Britain, official figures showed yesterday. The numbers come at a sensitive time for the political debate on immigration, which has seen the prospect of Britain ending free movement from Europe. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) found 69 [...]
Why do immigrants want to come to the UK? It’s not to get benefits or steal British jobs November 4, 2014 A relatively high proportion of non-UK nationals come the UK to study, and migrants have jobless rates comparable to those of UK nationals, official data suggests. According to an Office of National Statistics analysis of 2011 census data, 14 per cent of all migrants were students, compared to only 9.7 per cent for the UK [...]
David Cameron criticised for wanting to restrict Europe immigration November 3, 2014 Business leaders have hit out at David Cameron for opposing freedom of movement across the EU, warning yesterday that he is ignoring the real issues facing Britain. The Prime Minister has previously said that freedom of movement will be “at the very heart of my renegotiation strategy for Europe”, with his chancellor George Osborne hinting [...]
Boris Johnson welcomes report calling for more Commonwealth immigration November 3, 2014 The UK is missing a huge economic and cultural opportunity because of anachronistic and counterproductive restrictions on immigration from the Commonwealth, easing pressure created by its ageing population. So concludes a new report published today by think tank the Commonwealth Exchange, with a foreword written by London mayor Boris Johnson. Johnson wrote: We should welcome [...]