It’s a pity priti doesn’t get it
MANY parts of the UK have been devastated by the floods. It will take months for homes and businesses to dry out and be repaired.
Do you suppose flood victims would prefer river dredging to a high-speed railway?
And don’t you think the £13.4billion foreign aid budget could be better spent at home?
Write to me c/o Daily Star Sunday, One Canada Square, London E14 5AP
IT made for a testy moment on the radio…
Home Secretary Priti Patel was on my breakfast show, proudly extolling the virtues of the Government’s new immigration system.
From next January, migrant workers must have a job paying a minimum of £25,600, a set level of qualifications and be able to speak English.
“It occurs to me that under this policy, my late father’s family would not have been allowed into the country and, in fact, neither would yours, would they?” I said to Ms Patel.
The Home Secretary, whose parents came here from Uganda, tried to bat it back and talked about a points-based system and policies concerning economic migrants.
So I went again. And again. Finally, she replied: “This isn’t about my background or my parents.” The measures will be the biggest shake-up to our border rules since the UK joined the then Common Market nearly half a century ago.
But when you study the list of groups opposing the plans, could it be more balls-up than shake-up?
For example, the
British Chambers of Commerce said the processes had to be “radically simplified” or smaller-sized businesses will not cope.
The Freight Transport Association said it will create a shortage of HGV drivers, and the British Meat Packers Association warned it will make it very hard to recruit staff.
Abta, the travel trade association, said the same.
I’m not saying we don’t need to reform our immigration policy. Since
Tony Blair’s calamitous decision to throw open the doors to Eastern Europeans after the EU expansion far earlier than he needed to, many parts of the country, and many trades, have never fully recovered. No blame should be directed at those who chose to come here. But where was the planning for the extra houses, schools and hospitals that the new arrivals and their families would need? In many cases we have benefitted enormously from the arrival of young, committed and driven workers.
That was the point I was trying to make to Ms Patel, and only time will tell if the point got through to the Home Secretary.