Cameron’s emergency brake could ‘spark surge in number of migrants’

DAVID Cameron’s attempts to slow migration into the UK could lead to a surge in arrivals instead, a former minister warned last night.

The Prime Minister has hailed his ‘emergency brake’ designed to cut benefits for EU migrants to reduce the appeal of coming to Britain.

But former Tory Europe minister David Davis said there would be a delay before the measure comes in – creating an incentive for f oreign workers to head here i n the meantime.

He warned that migrants who had heard news coverage of the emergency brake – the centrepiece of Mr Cameron’s renegotiation deal with Brussels – would make it a priority to ‘beat the deadline’.

He said: ‘The so-called emergency brake that the Prime Minister is attempting to negotiate with Brussels is very likely to increase the number of people immigrating into the UK in the coming year.

‘To date very few would-be migrants would have been be aware of the British tax credits

‘Must ensure there isn’t a new influx’

system, let alone understand its complexities.

‘That is why only 10 per cent or less of new migrants to the UK claim in-work benefits in the first couple of years after arrival.’

Mr Davis said that since the outline of Mr Cameron’s deal was made public last week, Eastern European media have carried numerous stories about in-work benefits and the fact they will be cut for new arrivals.

He also warned that both the European Court of Justice, or the European Parliament, were likely to block the scheme ‘outright’ – meaning the measure would never actually come into force.

As a result, Britain ‘will actually end up with both an immediate increase, and an overall increase in the number of migrants coming to the UK’, he said.

Under the deal, EU workers arriving in Britain before the law is officially changed will be unaffected by the brake – which is already much weaker than Mr Cameron originally promised.

It will taper in-work benefits for new arrivals, with payments increasing the longer they remain.

Last year alone, 162,000 people moved to Britain from the EU for work-related reasons, though not all will be eligible for tax credits.

Yesterday, former Tory Cabinet minister, Sir Eric Pickles said the PM was ‘not trying to prevent people moving inside the EU’.

He told the BBC’s Daily Politics show the reforms were aimed at preventing migrants getting ‘something for nothing’ by claiming benefits before contributing to the UK.

The MP, who is expected to support the Prime Minister’s Europe deal and back Britain remaining in the EU, admitted action would be needed to prevent a short-term surge of migrants hoping to beat the emergency brake.

‘Clearly as part of the negotia- tions we have to ensure that that doesn’t happen,’ Mr Pickles said.

He added: ‘We’ve got to ensure that there isn’t a new influx.’

On Saturday, the Mail revealed it could be a year after the referendum before the necessary legislation is passed to curb in work benefits such as tax credits.

Government officials say they expect a delay of between one and three months.

But the European Commission has told member states the brake will not come into force for a year.

Mr Cameron is now preparing for an important summit with his counterparts in Brussels on February 18.

Last week the President of the European Parliament, Martin Schulz, warned many MEPs now wanted Britain out of the EU and said Britain was ‘ testing the patience’ of his colleagues with its ‘continuous demands’.