Weekly Immigration Matters news round up
UK Border Agency to speed up identity cards for foreign nationals
In a week when London’s temperature soared to 32 degrees, Home Secretary Alan Johnson ordered the UK Border Agency to review its rollout of compulsory identity cards for foreign nationals, with a view to accelerating the process. But at the same he appears to be making a ‘U turn’ on mandatory ID cards for British Citizens.
The agency has already issued 50,000 ID cards for foreign nationals legally living and working in the United Kingdom, and expects that all within three years foreign nationals from outside the European Economic Area (EEA) will need to have an ID card if they are coming to the UK for longer than six months or extending their stay. Full Story.
Italy adopts new law criminalising illegal immigration
Italy takes a hard line on immigration in a move that harps back to its fascist era under Mussolini. Last week Italy’s Parliament approved a law criminalising illegal immigration and allowing citizens’ patrols to help the police keep order
Deportation reprieve for skippers and Filipino Fishermen
Deportation reprieve for Filipino Fishermen, but the loophole which allows non EU workers to be employed “off-shore” can lead to exploitation. We have met a number of Filipino workers employed by UK companies on vessels off-shore without a Work Permit. Several were forced to jump ship because of extremely low pay and poor working conditions.
London’s first Swine Flu death but no need to panic
The BBC reports that a 19-year-old man has died after contracting swine flu in London, the fourth fatal case in the UK. However, to put this into perspective, the UK has a population of over 60 million, with 7.5 million people living in London alone.
Scotland wants own immigration system
The new Australian-style “points system”, which has been recently brought in by Home Office, requires new immigrants to amass enough points, based on factors such as a employment, skills shortages and community links to gain entry to the United Kingdom. Last week the Government published the latest approved Shortage Occupations List for Tier 2 of the points based system, which includes Care Assistants.
Visa requirement for South Africans starts today
The announcement is clearly designed to reassure the public that the Labour Government is taking steps to secure and strengthen Britain’s borders.
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