Immigration cap attacked as 'economics of sixth-form'

Published on Monday 28 June 2010 11:27

CONTROVERSIAL curbs on the number of skilled workers allowed into the country from outside the European Union could have a "dangerous" impact on Scotland's economy, it was claimed last night.

• The new temporary limit on migrant numbers is designed, say the Tories and Lib Dems, to prevent a rush of people towards UK borders, as they try to beat permanent restrictions due to be imposed next April. Picture: Steve Parsons/PA

The warning followed Home Secretary Theresa May's announcement of a temporary cap on the number of skilled non-EU immigrants entering Britain, ahead of permanent restrictions due to be introduced in April 2011.

Ms May claimed the move would lead to immigrant numbers dropping by 1,300 or 5 per cent, down to 24,100 between now and when the new cap is set, which will be decided after a consultation with business and gauging the needs of the wider economy.

Prime Minister David Cameron took a tough line on immigration in the run-up to the General Election, pledging to slash the numbers coming into the UK.

However, the cap announced by the Home Secretary yesterday was criticised by the Scottish Government and opposition politicians, while business leaders called for it made easier for "highly skilled" people from outside the EU to get work permits.

David Lonsdale, CBI Scotland's assistant director, said: "Introducing a cap for work permits is a valid way of balancing the need for skilled workers with the social pressures caused by immigration.

"But it's important that we get the structure right and that sufficient flexibility is built in so that highly skilled people who are essential to work being done in Scotland can get a work permit more readily.

"As well as setting the cap at the right level, the government must also be able to adjust it in future to meet changing economic circumstances."

The Federation of Small Businesses said the cap was the "economics of the sixth form" and claimed that it could stop businesses from filling vacancies during times of high demand.

But the Home Secretary said that the temporary limit was necessary to ensure there was not "a rush of people trying to come through into the UK" before the permanent cap was announced in the autumn following a three-month consultation.

The cap will only apply to highly skilled migrants and skilled workers and it does not apply to workers from EU countries, who are free to take jobs in the UK and make up a third of all foreign-born workers in the country.

The Home Secretary said that the temporary curb and eventual cap was just one in a series of measures being implemented to control net immigration, which she said had been too high during Labour's years in power.

The Tory-Lib Dem coalition government hopes the restriction will help get migration levels down to the levels seen in the mid 1990s.

Ms May said that the decision on what level the annual cap would be set at would take into account the social impact of immigration such as the pressure on schools, hospitals, council housing and other public services.

The minister claimed that uncontrolled immigration "was not a good thing" as it put services under pressure.

She also said that the threshold for gaining entry as a highly skilled migrant had been increased by five points to ensure only the "brightest and the best" non-EU migrants are allowed into the UK.

The UK government announcement came after recently released figures showed that Scotland had 21,700 more people arriving in the country than leaving it in 2009, including 17,500 who came from overseas - the highest figure since current records began in 1991-92.

However, Scotland's external affairs minister Fiona Hyslop warned that the cap imposed by the UK government could exclude workers whose skills were needed to help the Scottish economy grow.

Ms Hyslop said: "A cap on numbers is too blunt an instrument to address the complex needs of an economy growing its way out of a recession. What the Scottish Government has been advocating for years is an immigration system based on economic need, not on ideology.

"In Scotland, we are working hard to attract the brightest and best migrant workers to fill skills gaps and support sustainable economic growth. An arbitrary cap on numbers, that could exclude these individuals because they are not at the front of the queue, makes no sense."

Aberdeen North Labour MP Frank Doran claimed that the curb on skilled workers coming to Scotland could deprive key industries of expertise, which he said would be "foolish" decision. He added: "I know that the oil and gas industry in particular relies on skilled labour for work in the North Sea.

"Some companies in the North Sea have relied on people from the Philippines to carry out maintenance work during the summer months.

"There are also a lot of traditional industries such as the fish-processing industry, which employ Chinese workers. These workers help to keep these industries alive.

"If these supplies of labour were to be cut off, it would be very damaging to the industries we're talking about.

"Industry and business in Scotland needs these skills and limiting the supply of them would be foolish." A Scottish campaign group for migrants' rights also criticised the UK government's plans, which it described as a "blanket approach".

Sofi Taylor, of Migrants' Rights Scotland, said: "Skilled workers from overseas make a massive contribution to society through the work they do, but also through paying tax and VAT.

"They also perform some vital tasks in the NHS and in industries like catering, including Indian and Chinese restaurants.

"This is such a blanket approach that does not value the contribution migrants make to society."

SNP Aberdeen North MSP Brian Adam backed the claim that the immigration cap would harm Scotland's curry restaurants. Mr Adam said: "The problem with this one-size-fits-all approach is that it could be dangerous for Scotland's economy.

"There is a shortage of skilled chefs in Indian restaurants and I've had representations on this issue from associations representing the Pakistani and Bangladeshi communities.

"The cap announced by the UK government is likely to be damaging to the Scottish economy and I'm also concerned about the impact on the NHS and education, areas where people from outside the EU are employed."