'Fix' immigration so foreign workers flock to Scotland, advises race relations chief

Published on Thursday 13 March 2008 21:06

BRITAIN'S new points-based immigration system should be skewed to encourage more skilled workers to settle in Scotland, a leading race-relations figure will argue today.

Sir Trevor Phillips will tell a conference in St Andrews that skilled migrant workers should be awarded more entry qualification points if they line up a job in Scotland as opposed to England.

Speaking at an event hosted by the Scottish Council for Development and Industry, Sir Trevor will argue that Scotland is losing out to the more high- profile south-east of England when it comes to attracting skilled immigrants.

Research last year showed that employers in Scotland are finding more than half of vacancies hard to fill, with skill shortages concentrated in sectors like financial services, construction and tourism.

Under the new points-based system, which is being phased in over the coming months, skilled workers from overseas who want to move to the UK will have to meet a number of criteria.

They include being offered a job that meets a specific skills shortage according to a list currently being drawn up by the Home Office's migration advisory committee (Mac).

Mr Phillips, who is chairman of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, is calling for a Scotland "weighting" to be built into the system that will essentially allow skilled workers from overseas into the UK who would otherwise be barred.

He told The Scotsman: "We now have a system by which, generally speaking, people will get into the country if they have a job offer and have skills that are in demand, which will accrue points for the applicant. What I'm suggesting is that in totting up those points, you could bias the system so those who have jobs in Scotland get extra points.

"We should be creating an incentive for people to move to Scotland rather than tending to do what they do now, which is heading straight to London and the south-east.

"That would be a good thing for Scottish business. It would give them an extra fillip in trying to attract good talent."

He said business leaders in Scotland have told him they are losing out as skilled migrants flock to London.

"It is difficult for anywhere that is not the capital city. Most migrants will head to London, or Toronto, or Paris, or Sydney, because that's where they've heard of.

"Under the new system, we have the opportunity to take the edge off that and divert the flow a bit," he added.

Mr Phillip said he was keen to ensure the new system worked well so the public would see how immigrants could benefit the country.

A Border and Immigration Agency spokesman said it was working to identify specific Scottish skills shortages.

"Our new points-based system for managing migration will ensure that those with the right skills to benefit Britain can come here to contribute.

"The recently established Mac will advise ministers on where migration might sensibly fill gaps in the UK labour market. The Mac has already started work on the first 'shortage occupation list' for skilled employment, which it aims to publish in June.

"There are specific issues in Scotland, such as the declining population, that the points system could help offset, and we have asked the Mac to produce a Scottish shortage occupation list," he said.

A spokeswoman for the Scottish Government said:

"We are confident that Scotland can attract talent from around the world and we are exploring a range of options with the Home Office which will make it easier for those who are skilled to work here and to remain in Scotland.

"The 'Fresh Talent: Working in Scotland' scheme has shown that flexibilities in the UK's managed migration system can work well for Scotland."

ENEMIES FROM KEN LIVINGSTONE TO BARACK OBAMA

TREVOR Phillips chairs the Equality and Human Rights Commission, which came into being in October last year.

He was often a figure of controversy during his tenure as the chair of the Commission for Racial Equality, which has been subsumed by the new body.

London's mayor, Ken Livingstone, had an acrimonious relationship with Mr Phillips when the CRE chief was chair of the London Assembly. He once accused Mr Phillips of moving so far to the Right that he expected him to "soon be joining the British National Party". Mr Phillips' assertion soon after he took over at the CRE that multiculturalism – a policy previously advocated by the race watchdog – encouraged divisions, was met with widespread criticism.

Last month, he accused US presidential hopeful Barack Obama of cynically exploiting America's racial divide, warning that he could prolong, rather than heal the rift, if he become the next incumbent of the White House.

Highlighting perceived chasms between ethnic groups in Britain has also been a key theme for Mr Phillips, who received an OBE in 1999. In 2005, he warned the UK was "sleepwalking into segregation" which could see the creation of racial ghettos.

Mr Phillips was born in London in 1953 but went to secondary school in Georgetown, Guyana, before returning to London to study chemistry at university.

After becoming head of the National Union of Students, he went into a career in journalism and broadcasting.