Block on immigration will protect UK jobs

OLDHAM took centre stage this weekend after Phil Woolas called for a tough approach to immigration to protect British jobs in the economic downturn.

The number of migrants coming into the UK must be curbed to bring population growth under control, the Oldham East MP Phil Woolas warned.

The newly appointed Immigration Minister said increasingly tough economic conditions made immigration an extremely thorny issue and vowed that the Government would not allow the population to expand out of control.

Mr Woolas said: “The introduction of the points-based system will protect British people’s jobs.

“If people are being made unemployed, the question of immigration becomes extremely thorny. It’s been too easy to get into this country in the past and it’s going to get harder.”

Latest figures from the Office for National Statistics show that the population grew by nearly two million people to 60,975,000 between 2001 and last year.

And last week the unemployment rate rose sharply to 5.7 per cent in the last quarter, taking the number of those out of work to 1.79 million.

Mr Woolas said: “This Government isn’t going to allow the population to go up to 70 million. There has to be a balance between the number of people coming in and the number of people leaving.

“What we are doing is toughening up criteria and ensuring that if you work here it does not give you automatic right to stay.”

It is not possible to put a quota on EU citizens because the law allows movement between all EU countries.

But Mr Woolas said the introduction of a points-based system, similar to that used in Australia, would give the public confidence that the issue is being taken seriously.

He said: “We believe the points-based system will improve the situation and get the confidence of the public.

“After I made the comments people were being interviewed around me when I was in Tommyfield market on Saturday and there was strong support from all communities.

“What the Government wants to do is remove illegal immigration much more quickly and bring controls that are much tighter.”

Ministers have previously resisted calls for an overall limit on immigration.