I'll block new countries joining the EU without a deal to control immigration, Cameron warns Brussels as he unveils benefits crackdown
The Prime Minister today made clear that if he fails to secure
agreement to impose curbs on tax credits, child benefit and councils
houses, he will 'rule nothing out' in his promised referendum.
I'll block new countries joining the EU without a deal to control immigration, Cameron warns Brussels as he unveils benefits crackdown
- Working migrants will not get tax credits and council houses for four years
- Jobless migrants offered no support and kicked out after six months
- Prime Minister insists his ideas are not 'outlandish' and need to be heard
- Appeals to EU leaders who have lost thousands of workers to Britain
- Warns action is needed on immigration to secure UK's future in the EU
- Threatens to block new countries joining the EU without movement curbs
- New fund to be created to help key areas cope with influx of migrants
- London Mayor Boris Johnson warns against being 'hostile' to immigrants
- European Commission official spokesman calls for a period of 'calm'
Britain
will veto any new countries joining the European Union unless limits
are put on workers from poor countries moving in search of work, David
Cameron vowed today.
The
Prime Minister used his long-awaited immigration speech to insist that
curbs on tax credits, child benefits, jobseekers allowance and council
housing will be a key demand for his talks on renegotiating Britain's EU
membership.
Issuing
a direct appeal for other European countries who have seen thousands of
their citizens move to the UK to support limiting movement across the
continent, he insisted his demands were not 'outlandish' and Britain
deserves 'to be heard'.
And
he threatened to block any new countries joining the EU unless controls
are imposed to stop their citizens flocking to more successful
economies like Britain.
David Cameron today threatened to
block any new members joining the European Union without limits on their
citizens flocking to Britain for work
Mr
Cameron made clear that without agreement on allowing the UK to
dramatically curtail the pull factors which make it so attractive to EU
migrants, he will 'rule nothing out' – raising the prospect of backing
Britain's exit from the EU if he does not get his way.
The
Tory leader has promised that if he is Prime Minister after the next
election he will renegotiate Britain's membership of the EU before
holding an in-out referendum by 2017.
Today
in a speech at a JCB factory in Staffordshire, he put Brussels on
notice that welfare reform is 'an absolute requirement' in the
negotiations.
If
our concerns fall on deaf ears and we cannot put our relationship with
the EU on a better footing, then of course I rule nothing out
Prime Minister David Cameron
'It is not wrong to express concern about the scale of people coming into the country,' he said.
'People have understandably become frustrated. It boils down to one word: control.'
While his proposed curbs on benefits will apply to existing EU countries, he wants to go further for new member states.
Mr
Cameron said: 'We will insist that when new countries are admitted to
the EU in the future, free movement will not apply to those new members
until their economies have converged much more closely with existing
Member States.
'Future accession treaties require unanimous agreement of all Member States. So the UK will ensure this change is included.'
He risks angering other EU leaders with his threat to veto new countries joining the 28-nation bloc.
But a Downing Street source said: 'These decision have to be unanimous. So that shows we will ensure we get what we want.'
In a major speech
on immigration today, David Cameron called on Brussels to back curbs on
tax credits and council houses for EU migrants
Mr
Cameron hopes to cut overall levels of immigration by making it harder
to stay in Britain without a job and curbing access to benefits which
top-up wages for low paid, low-skilled workers.
And
he made clear he plans to form alliances with leaders in central and
eastern Europe who have lost their 'brightest and best' to Britain.
He stressed that he supported immigration, but it needed to be controlled. 'Our openness is part of who we are.'
But
Mr Cameron told leaders across Europe that concerns about immigration
can no longer be ignored: 'It's time we talked about this properly.'
He
warned concerns about the scale of movement across borders is
responsible for the decline of the 'democratic legitimacy of the EU' and
is leading to a 'corrosion of trust in the European Union and the rise
of populist parties'.
Mr Cameron discussed his ideas with German Chancellor Angela Merkel last night.
Asked
whether Mr Cameron's proposals would fall foul of EU rules requiring
countries to treat citizens of other member states equally with their
own nationals, Commission chief spokesman Margaritis Schinas said:
'These are UK ideas and they are part of the debate.
'They will have to be examined without drama and should be discussed calmly and carefully.
'It is up to national lawmakers to fight against abuses of the system and EU law allows for this.'
Speaking at the JCB World Headquarters
in Rocester, Staffordshire, Mr Cameron insisted Britain must not pull
up the drawbridge to the rest of the world but take action to control
immigration
However,
Mr Cameron has abandoned an attempt to impose a limit on the number of
people who can come to Britain, despite latest figures showing a record
rise in EU immigration.
Aides
concede the idea of a cap or an 'emergency brake' if the number of
migrants from individual countries suddenly soared, were too complex to
implement.
Several senior EU figures had warned it would be illegal and breach the fundamental right to free movement across the continent.
Instead,
Mr Cameron has focussed on a package of measures limiting access to
benefits which is much more draconian than anything proposed to date by
Labour or the Lib Dems.
He
believes it could dramatically reduce Britain's appeal to workers in
central and eastern Europe, who are able to top-up their incomes with
in-work benefits like tax credits.
The PM insisted that if his renegotiation of EU membership is a success he will campaign to keep Britain in.
But
in a blunt warning that he could back an exit, he add: 'If our concerns
fall on deaf ears and we cannot put our relationship with the EU on a
better footing, then of course I rule nothing out.'
Unemployed
EU migrants in Britain will be banned from receiving state support, and
would be deported if they do not get a job within six months of
arriving.
For
those in work, they would be barred from claiming handouts like housing
benefit or tax credits until they have being in the UK for four years.
There will also be a ban on 'exporting' child benefit for children living in other EU countries.
Mr Cameron
has focussed on a package of measures limiting access to benefits which
is much more draconian than anything proposed to date by Labour or the
Lib Dems
At the next election the Tories will
promise to create an emergency fund to help areas struggling to cope
with a large influx of immigrants
A new fund will also be promised in the Tory manifesto to help areas worst affected by dramatic influxes of immigrants.
Mr Cameron argues that the rules should apply across the EU, including to British citizens living in other European countries.
But
he made clear: 'If negotiating for the whole EU should not prove
possible, I would want to see them included in a UK-only settlement.'
Crucially,
other leading EU countries including Germany and the Netherlands, have
signalled a willingness to act on benefit tourism across the 28-nation
bloc.
But many of the proposed changes will need Treaty change, requiring the agreement of all member states.
Mr
Cameron said: 'The British people need to know that changes to welfare
to cut EU migration will be an absolute requirement in the
renegotiation.
'I
say to our European partners. We have real concerns. Our concerns are
not outlandish or unreasonable. We deserve to be heard, and we must be
heard.'
He made clear that Britain's continued membership of the EU is in doubt without action on immigration.
'Here is an issue which matters to the British people, and to our future in the European Union,' Mr Cameron said.
'The
British people will not understand – frankly I will not understand - if
a sensible way through cannot be found, which will help settle this
country's place in the EU once and for all.'
Mr
Cameron warned other EU leaders they cannot dismiss Britain's demands
as 'impossible' or 'turn a deaf ear' to concerns about immigration.
He stressed that growing public anxiety about migration was not unique to Britain.
While
some countries, like Britain, have seen huge numbers of people arrive,
others have witness large-scale emigration of workers to more successful
economies.
Mr Cameron has promised to renegotiate Britain's membership of the EU before holding an in-out referendum by 2017
PRIME MINISTER'S SPEECH SETS ALARM BELLS RINGING
David Cameron looks to his aides to turn off the alarm at the JCB factory
An alarm at the JCB factory in Staffordshire interrupted David Cameron's much-anticipated speech.
The
piercing noise began sounding after the Prime Minister made clear he
wanted to 'restore a sense of fairness and bring down the current spike
in numbers'.
He pressed on initially, but then took a pause while staff scrambled to turn it off.
Mr Cameron joked: 'This is clearly setting off alarm bells in the European Commission... I am glad it's had that effect.'
Across the European Union, issues of migration are causing real concern and raising real questions.
Mr
Cameron said: 'Can it be in the interests of central and eastern
European Member States that so many of their brightest and best are
drawn away from home when they are needed most?
'If
we ignore it, it will not go away. Across the European Union we are
seeing the frustrations of our citizens, demonstrated in the results of
the European Elections.
'Leadership
means dealing with those frustrations, not turning a deaf ear to them.
And we have a duty to act on them, to restore the democratic legitimacy
of the EU.
'So
I say to our friends in Europe: It's time we talked about this
properly. And a conversation cannot begin with the word 'no'.'
In
a clear swipe at the UK Independence Party, which has built support by
highlighting public concerns over immigration, the Prime Minister warned
voters to 'distrust those who sell the snake oil of simple solutions'.
Denouncing
as 'appalling' any suggestion of repatriating legal migrants, Mr
Cameron said Britain was great 'because of immigration, not in spite of
it', and insisted he was proud of the UK's openness to incomers and its
creation of 'a successful multi-racial democracy'.
The
isolationism of those who want to 'pull up the drawbridge' and shut off
immigration altogether is 'actually deeply unpatriotic', he said.
'For
the sake of British jobs, British livelihoods and British opportunities
we must fight this dangerous and misguided view that our nation can
withdraw from the world and somehow all will be well,' said Mr Cameron.
But
Mr Cameron also warned against the 'dangerous' idea that immigration is
not a problem and that it is racist to voice anxiety about it.
'We
should be clear,' said the Prime Minister. 'It is not wrong to express
concern about the scale of people coming into the country.
'People
have understandably become frustrated. It boils down to one word:
control. People want Government to have control over the numbers of
people coming here and the circumstances in which they come, both from
around the world and from within the European Union.
'They
want control over who has the right to receive benefits and what is
expected of them in return. They want to know that foreign criminals can
be excluded - or if already here, removed. And they want us to manage
carefully the pressures on our schools, our hospitals and our housing.
'If
we are to maintain this successful open meritocratic democracy we
treasure, we have to maintain faith in Government's ability to control
the rate at which people come to this country.
'And yet in recent years, it has become clear that successive governments have lacked control.
'People want grip. I get that. And I completely agree.'
Before
the election Mr Cameron promised to cut net migration – the difference
between the number arriving in the UK and the number leaving – to the
'tens of thousands'.
But
damning new figures yesterday showed 260,000 more people arrived in the
UK than left in the last year, including a record 228,000 extra
immigrants who arrived from elsewhere in the EU.
The
number of people moving to the UK for work is up by a fifth to 247,000,
including a rise of 11,000 Romanians and Bulgarians, and an extra
10,000 from the so-called EU10 countries: Cyprus, Czech Republic,
Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and
Slovenia.
While
the government has acted to limit access to jobseekers allowance for
unemployed migrants, many more are in work but claiming benefits to
top-up their incomes.
There are some 317,000 EU migrants in work who claim tax credits, at a cost of £2.2billion.
There
are also 150,000 EU migrants also claim in-work housing benefit to help
with rent costs, running up a bill of £900million a year for the
British taxpayer.
Downing
Street says someone coming to UK from EU who works full-time on minimum
wage and has two children back in their home country receives around
£700 a month in benefits.
It
is claimed the changes announced today will revert to the rules which
existed before a European Court judgment in 1991 which meant member
states had the right to expect workers to have a job offer before they
arrived.
It will restore rules put in place by Tory PM Margaret Thatcher in the 1980s.
Mr
Cameron said: 'My objective is simple: to make our immigration system
fairer and reduce the current exceptionally high level of migration from
within the EU into the UK.
'We
intend to cut migration from within Europe by dealing with abuse;
restricting the ability of migrants to stay here without a job; and
reducing the incentives for lower paid, lower skilled workers to come
here in the first place.
'We
want to create the toughest system in the EU for dealing with abuse of
free movement. We want EU jobseekers to have a job offer before they
come here and to stop UK taxpayers having to support them if they
don't…EU jobseekers who don't pay in will no longer get anything out.
And those who do come will no longer be able to stay if they can't find
work.'
Labour's
shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper said: 'Immigration is important to
Britain - that's why it needs to be controlled and managed so that the
system is fair. But David Cameron's 'no ifs, no buts' immigration target
has completely failed. Four and a half years in to his Government, his
promises on an immigration target are in tatters.
'Rather than ramping up the rhetoric, David Cameron must now set out sensible, practical plans.
'Labour
has already announced plans to stop recruitment agencies and employers
exploiting immigration to undercut wages and jobs, longer waiting
periods for out of work benefits, reform so that in-work benefits aren't
available until someone has contributed and action to stop child
benefit being sent abroad, so the system is more fair. In place of
broken promises we need sensible plans.'
Matthew
Elliott, chief executive of the pro-reform Business for Britain
campaign, said: 'The PM has set out significant reforms that deserve
serious consideration. However, following yesterday's migration
statistics, the public will be hoping the Government acts sooner rather
than later.
'For
aspects that don't require approval of other EU member states the
Government should act now, to show they are capable of delivering real
change.
'Immigration
policy is of great concern to voters, so rebuilding confidence in it is
a key aspect of winning public support for the new renegotiated deal.
After a long wait, we have our first red line, but it is only a starting
point and we will see how the EU reacts to these proposals. In other
areas of EU reform though, the PM will have to be far more ambitious.'
Katja
Hall, CBI Deputy Director-General, said: The UK's openness to trade,
people and investment has been the foundation of Britain's success in
the past and will remain central in the future. Immigration has helped
keep the wheels of this recovery turning by plugging skills shortages
and allowing UK firms to grow.
'Freedom
of movement to work is essential to businesses getting access to the
best talent and equally offers British citizens the chance to take up a
job anywhere across the EU.
We must not be negative about immigration, says Boris Johnson hours before the PM's draconian crackdown
Boris
Johnson has warned of the dangers of being 'negative' about
immigration, insisting Britain must not be seen to be 'hostile' to
people who want to move here for work.
The
London Mayor insisted he backed the plan to limit access to benefits
for four years and curb handouts for out-of-work migrants.
But
speaking during a tour in Singapore, Mr Johnson signalled that the
success of the capital relies on its ability to attract people from
around the world.
London Mayor Boris Johnson, pictured
being greeted by Narajan the porter at Raffles Hotel in Singapore,
warned against Britain being seen to be 'hostile' to immigrants.
In
a speech to the Chamber of Commerce in Singapore, Mr Johnson insisted
there should not be any sign of hostility to highly qualified working
immigrants.
The
mayor made a point during a question-and-answer session not to name
Ukip, insisting the Eurosceptic party would quickly melt away as the SDP
did in the 1980s.
Mr
Johnson said: 'I haven't had a chance to read in detail what the Prime
Minister is saying today but I think he's on pretty much the right
lines.
What would be a bad idea, for us in the UK, would be for the UK to send out a signal we are somehow hostile to talent
London Mayor Boris Johnson
'What
he's trying to do... our benefits system, which is very much more
generous than those of many other EU member states, from acting as a
suction force, a pull, to people who aren't wanting to come and work but
to (pull) of the state or whatever.
'I
think the numbers of such people are probably pretty small but there is
unquestionably a phenomenon. There is no doubt people see our benefits
system in the UK as an attraction for coming here.
'What David Cameron is proposing seems very sensible - you would have a four-year hiatus before you could get such benefits.
'But
what would be a bad idea, for us in the UK, would be for the UK to send
out a signal we are somehow hostile to talent and hostile to brilliant
people who want to come and make their lives in our country - 40 per
cent of Londoners were born abroad. The dynamism of the London economy
is intrinsically bound up with its ability to attract talent.
'The last thing we should be is negative.'
Mr Johnson rode the Metro in Singapore as part of his Far East Tour which will also take in Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur
On
Ukip and their success in winning two MPs, Mr Johnson added: 'It is not
(unprecedented), there was something called the SDP - they disappeared
like the puffball they were.
'I
think that party, which I will not dignify by repeating the name, the
party has no positive prospectus for this country whatever.
'When
I look at the way things are stacking up I think it is highly unlikely
it will be, they will come through in May 2015 with any more than a
couple of seats.
'They
won't change the political landscape except to make it more likely,
alas, the leader of the Opposition would be in Downing Street - which
would be a catastrophe.'
In
an extended section of his prepared speech, Mr Johnson discussed
'alien' plants which had been introduced to Britain from abroad,
including the English rose from Iran, garden peas from Turkey and London
plane trees from Spain and Belgium.
Mr Johnson, who is standing to become an MP next year, claimed Ukip 'no positive prospectus for this country whatever'
He
said seedlings from Kew Gardens, originally from Brazil, had been the
foundation of Singapore's botanic garden. The mayor will visit the
garden tomorrow with Kew executives to mark the relationship.
He said: 'I tell you, there are people who would probably chop those trees down and send them back.
'Let
us work to encourage the free trade between our countries, the exchange
of ideas, the movement of talent, the great cross pollination and cross
fertilisation that has advanced these two global entrepots since they
were founded.'
Earlier in the day, Mr Johnson had a 50-minute meeting with Singapore prime minister Lee Hsien Loong.
Theyr
discussed a range of matters, including tax on foreign homebuyers,
which is policy in Singapore, how to tackle population growth and terror
threats.
Mr
Johnson also attended a special event for financial technology
companies at the Marina Bay Sands complex, witnessing a demonstration of
new applications and giving a speech praising the value of the growing
sector to the capital.
The mayor also took a brief ride on the city's underground, or MRT system, drawing a crowd of locals taking his picture.
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