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Press Releases for February 2004
February 24, 2004
MigrationWatch comment on publication of asylum statistics. February 24…
February 23, 2004
MigrationWatch response to Home Secretary's statement in the House of Commons re 10 accession countries joining EU in May.
February 9, 2004
MigrationWatch comment on EU immigration…
February 2, 2004
Figures forecast huge rise in UK population…
Full Text of Releases : February 2004
February 24, 2004
MigrationWatch comment on publication of asylum statistics. February 24…
The reduction in claims is welcome but the UK was the largest recipient of asylum seekers in the Western world in 2003. [1] This will continue for as long as we fail to remove those whose claims are rejected.
A recent House of Commons report confirmed that only one in five failed asylum seekers was removed in 2002. [2] This trend has continued in 2003 [3] . They described this rate as unacceptably low. We agree.
There are now well over a quarter of a million people who have failed asylum in the last seven years but for whom there is no evidence of departure, and as such are here illegally. The last quarter of 2003 has seen a 12% reduction in the number of asylum applicants removed compared with Q3.
Commenting, Sir Andrew Green, Chairman of MigrationwatchUK, said, 'The asylum system continues to be used as a back door to Britain at the tax payers' expense. The government must stop tinkering with a failed system and reform it radically.'
Notes
| [1] | Source UNHCR Asylum Levels and Trends in Industrialised Countries - 2003 issued 24/02/04 |
| [2] | House of Commons Home Affairs Committee: Second Report of Session 2003-4 paragraph 229 |
| [3] | In 2003 there have been 65,655 appeals dismissed and a further 8,015 applicants who did not appeal against their initial rejection - a total of over 73,000 principal applicants who would becoming liable for removal. But only 12,490 principal applicants were removed |
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February 23, 2004
MigrationWatch response to Home Secretary's statement in the House of Commons re 10 accession countries joining EU in May.
We welcome the measures to tighten up the benefit system which are long overdue.
We do not believe the registrations scheme is enforceable any more than the work permit scheme has been. But the real weakness appears to be that the Government has no policy as to how many people we want on this overcrowded island.
Foreign immigration is already running at around 250,000 a year.
Today's announcement will simply add to this without any
counter- balancing reduction.
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February 9, 2004
MigrationWatch comment on EU immigration…
David Blunkett seems to have grasped the stick firmly by the wrong end. Migrationwatch is not opposed to all immigration, as we have repeatedly and publicly made clear. Any attempt to suggest otherwise is to wilfully misrepresent our position.
The issue is not whether Eastern Europeans should be allowed to work in Britain but whether they should be required to have work permits as is required everywhere else in the EU except Ireland.
Failure to impose any controls at all is, in our view, very unwise given the present massive levels of immigration. At present levels, we can expect our population to increase by seven million over the next three decades - this is seven times the population of Birmingham.
As for his claim that Scotland needs a larger population, England has received nearly a million immigrants in the last ten years but Scotland has had a net loss due to emigration of 41,000. This indicates beyond doubt that heavy immigration into the UK does not prevent a loss of population from Scotland.
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February 2, 2004
Figures forecast huge rise in UK population…
Latest Government population projections reveal that the UK population could well grow by the equivalent of seven cities the size of Birmingham over the next three decades. 4.4 million (63%) of the seven million population increase will result from immigration.
In an analysis of the Variant Population Projections issued by the Government Actuary's Department last week (Jan 29) think-tank Migrationwatch has calculated that, based on the last five years actual average of 158,000 net inward migration (1), the UK population will rise by some seven million by mid-2031 from its present level of 59.2m.
(See table).
The principal variant, published last December (2), gave an estimated population increase of 5.6 million of which three million was due to immigration. But this was based on net immigration of 103,000 (3). In fact the average of the last five years is 158,000.
Publication of the variant projections allows the calculation of the effect on our population if immigration continues at the present level.
This gives an increase of seven million of which 4.4 million would be due to immigration.
There may be some reduction in the asylum seeker component of immigration if the number of claimants continues to decline but this will be counterbalanced by the massive expansion of the work permit scheme - up from 30,000 permits p.a. in the early 1990's to an estimated 175,000 in the 2003-4 financial year, plus dependants; and by immigration from Eastern Europe following the Government's decision to allow immediate access to work and benefits to the 72million people in the 10 countries joining the EU in May.
Indeed the government's highest variant, which the Government Actuary presumably considers a reasonable possibility, would add 7.8 million
to the UK's population of which 5.2 million would be attributable
to immigration.
None of these estimates take account of illegal immigration, generally considered to be on a considerable scale.
'It is only every two years that government figures provide the opportunity to explore the impact of immigration on our population, yet these figures have emerged on the day after the Hutton Report and with no press announcement,' said Sir Andrew Green, Chairman of Migrationwatch.
'They make it abundantly clear that we face by far the highest levels of immigration in our history. The whole nature of our society is being irreversibly changed without the British people being consulted.
'Mr Blunkett's only response has been his statement on television recently that there 'was no obvious upper limit to immigration.'
'The Government claims to have a 'managed migration' policy but in fact they are presiding over a massive rise in the UK population without any serious attempt to explain to the British people why it is needed, or how and where this huge expansion is to be accommodated,'
said Sir Andrew.
'When you consider that we are talking about a population rise equivalent to seven cities the size of Birmingham and that some 75% of migrants end up in London and the South East, the implications for housing, health, education and infrastructure are enormous.
'Britain can benefit from skilled immigration. The issue is one of scale and, above all of public confidence in the integrity of our borders.
'The all party Home Affairs Committee of the House of Commons suggested last week that it would be healthy to have a debate on the desirable levels of immigration, how the public should be consulted over immigration policy and how that policy should be policed (4). The time for that debate is now,' said Sir Andrew. top of the page
(1) Control of Immigration Statistics UK 2002. Table 9.1
(2) ONS Press Release18 Dec 2003
(3) Same Press Release
(4) Home Affairs Committee Report on Asylum Applications, published 26 Jan 2004. Recommendation 61.
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