When
campaigning in Meriden, it was crystal clear to me and the Labour Party that
many residents are extremely worried about immigration. It is therefore obvious
to Labour that it needs to take a serious approach to the issue so that voters
can see that they are being listened to.
The last
Labour Government made mistakes on immigration, particularly by not utilising
transitional controls for certain Eastern European countries. The level of
migration, particularly low skilled migration, was therefore too high. That’s
why Labour has changed its stance.
As Labour’s
Parliamentary Candidate for Meriden, I want to explain the solutions Labour is
putting forward. To address the concerns of people living in Meriden, and across
the country, Labour will:
·
bring in tough new laws to stop
agencies and employers exploiting cheap migrant labour to undercut wages and
jobs. These laws will be particularly useful in markets involving high levels
of foreign recruitment and young unemployed people. These laws will make
exploitation a crime including fines up to £50,000 for paying below the minimum
wage, give local councils more enforcement powers and stop agencies only recruiting
foreign workers;
·
strengthen Britain’s border
controls, including introducing new border checks and visa enforcement to tackle
illegal immigration, stop abuse and manage the level of migration;
·
introduce a smarter system for
different kinds of immigration instead of the Government’s failed targets – to
welcome more overseas University students who bring in billions while ensuring
we reduce the amount of low skilled migration;
·
make sure people who come to this
country learn English – so we celebrate our diversity but don’t have divided
communities;
·
bring in fairer rules to make
clear people are contributing to Britain – so new arrivals don’t claim benefits
and so it is easier to deport those who commit crimes; and
·
reform European free movement of
labour so there are longer transitional controls, stronger employment
protection, restrictions on benefits by extending the time before claims can be
made to 6 months and restrictions on foreign criminals.
At the
same time, Labour is rightly resolute in ensuring the immigration debate does
not turn into one of rhetoric and to stop discussions being based on damaging inaccuracies.
The truth is:
·
UKIP are wrong to scaremonger by
saying there are 26 million unemployed people in the EU looking for jobs in the
UK - less than 1% of that figure actually came to the UK last year and many of
those were students;
·
unless non-EU immigrants have
indefinite leave to remain (i.e have lived in the UK for 5 years or more) they
can't normally claim benefits, such as income support or housing benefit;
·
EU migrants cannot claim benefits
unless they have been in the UK for more than 3 months and are settling in the
UK;
·
overall, migrants pay more in
taxes than they claim in benefits and only 2.6% of EU migrants claim
unemployment benefits. The rest are working, studying or supporting themselves,
for instance a retired person living with family. Non-EU migrants usually can’t
claim benefits at all; and
·
the previous Labour Government
changed the rules so most foreign nationals who have recently come to England
are not eligible for social housing. The current and previous government have
also put in place powers and new guidance so that councils can ensure people
have a local connection before getting housing.
I should also add that immigration has played a vital role in the UK’s
successful history. I would not be alive today if my granddad had not been able
to come to England from Jamaica to work hard as a bus driver all of his life,
and my grandmother come from Italy to work as a carer for old people. Britain
is a wonderful place for its appreciation of diversity. That is why Labour will
take a balanced approach that deals with the real problems while maintaining what
makes the UK such a tolerant nation.
