1. The last three or four times I’ve used a plumber or an electrician they’ve been immigrants so on a purely anecdotal point of view, more immigrants probably means more tradesmen not less.I think a lot of people (me included) have a problem with legal migration as well.
I am not opposed to it in principle. The issue I have is essentially pragmatic:
1. Irrespective of planning reforms, we do not have the bandwidth in terms of electricians, plumbers, plasters, roofers, bricklayers etc, to build the requisite numbers of houses. My brother-in-law is a builder and knows this all too well. Have you tried getting hold of a plumber lately? Anyone who is any good is booked up for weeks or months. We cannot continue bringing hundreds of thousands of additional people into the country every year as things stand. We can't house them, we don't have sufficient hospital or healthcare capacity or transport or anything else. The country is FULL.
2. Social integration. Surely we can all agree we want a well-integrated, socially harmonious society where sure, everyone has their own cultural heritage but we all rub along and respect what we have in common and also our differences. In far too many cases, we don't have that at the moment. We have right wing racist thugs hell bent on "taking our country back" and we have largely Muslim communities not integrating and declaring Islamic no-go areas for westerners. This cannot continue and with immigration running at current rates, it's only going to get worse until something terrible finally snaps. We could even end up in civil war unless we start to take this problem very seriously.
Only they haven’t, Sunak has.
From your article, “The drop from 860,000 in the year to December 2024 follows a series of policies implemented by the last Conservative government that have been continued by the present Labour government.”
It's been reported on the BBC that she had a row with the Speaker mate.How do we not know she has suffered a personal bereavement in her family or something similar ? telling someone to walk away from a job is patronizing when all we know so far is that it is a personal matter.
It's been reported on the BBC that she had a row with the Speaker mate.
Because 400,000 is still WAY too many. That alone would result in less than zero additional homes for young British people. People who already cannot get on the housing ladder and/or are struggling with high rent payments. Even if Labour meet their 300k/y new home target, which is almost certain not going to be met.so what you moaning about legal migration for when its been halved in a year ?
Because 400,000 is still WAY too many. That alone would result in less than zero additional homes for young British people. People who already cannot get on the housing ladder and/or are struggling with high rent payments. Even if Labour meet their 300k/y new home target, which is almost certain not going to be met.
We cannot sustain this.
Interesting the debate has switched from Welfare to immigration because the two are intrinsically linked.My point is that we NEED these people here if our own are not prepared or able to carry out these roles. Full or not, and we are clearly not if you look around, unless there is a major shift in what the "locals" are prepared to do, future legal immigration is a necessity. You are the only person who suggested deportation.
Yes, there is a lot of drivel. I do, however try to keep mine factual. Remeber it's only a week since you were 50% out with one of your own "facts"! bye for now.
The issue is just that " what the locals are prepared to do"Full or not, and we are clearly not if you look around, unless there is a major shift in what the "locals" are prepared to do, future legal immigration is a necessity
Well first of all thank-you for your admission that the 800k to 400k reduction was down to Tory policy changes and nothing Labour has done. Now, having got that out of the way, if we are to reduce it further, I’d like to see some policies which would drive that. I am unaware what they are. Are you aware of any?Tories had 14 years to curb migration, Labour have had 10 months - It's down from 800,000 to 400,000 - what did you realistically expect ? 800k to zero ?
Spot on.Interesting the debate has switched from Welfare to immigration because the two are intrinsically linked.
The issue is just that " what the locals are prepared to do"
The "locals" choose not to do some jobs e.g. social care, agricultural work, because the provision of Welfare allows them that choice.
Look at what happened in Parliament yesterday - MP's debating cutting provision to some of the no doubt genuinely disabled in an attempt to reduce the Welfare bill, whilst maintaining a system that allows the able bodied to opt out of paid work and stay on benefits because low paid jobs "are not worth their while" - I don't blame them for making that choice by the way, perfectly understandable if that choice is available but it shouldn't be.
In history what kind of a society cannot even pick the vegetables from the ground or the fruit from the trees to feed itself, or be prepared to care for its own sick and elderly populace - surely we must be drunk on welfare for that to be able to happen.
If there was no welfare payout, would we find some care workers and agricultural workers ?
We haven't put that to the test because its easier for our cowardly politicians to import some cheap labour.
Low skilled Labour to do low paid jobs. Its only cheap because no one counts the cost of the social housing or housing benefit paid, the Universal credit, the healthcare costs, the education costs, the strain on infrastructure etc.
To top it all the tax take on those low paid jobs is minimal.
Low skilled immigration in this country now is economic lunacy .
To fix immigration we need to fix welfare .
Yesterday the debacle in Parliament and the latest from the channel demonstrated this government doesn't have the courage or the will to do either.
Re 2, I did some Googling and it seems that may be an urban myth, so my apologies, but I had seen comments about such areas and had taken them on face value.1. The last three or four times I’ve used a plumber or an electrician they’ve been immigrants so on a purely anecdotal point of view, more immigrants probably means more tradesmen not less.
2. Can you name an Islamic no-go area for Westerners in the UK? I’m not saying there aren’t valid concerns about integration but unless you can prove otherwise I’d say these mythical no-go areas are hyperbole.
In history what kind of a society cannot even pick the vegetables from the ground or the fruit from the trees to feed itself, or be prepared to care for its own sick and elderly populace - surely we must be drunk on welfare for that to be able to happen.
I agree with all of that. But I also think we as a nation have become arrogant and up ourselves. Far too many people think, with respect to jobs, “I’m not doing THAT”. And of course pay is a big factor in that, and is intimately linked to how many people (too many) prefer to stay at home and not work. I wonder how many would change their tune if offered more money? Someone not working due to “my mental health” might not feel so inclined if they were going to be paid more.I'm not going to comment on agriculture because I'm a know nowt but I can say with some confidence that we have
culturally become less capable of collectively caring for our vulnerable. Over decades we have eroded the value we place on certain types of behaviours and characteristics all of which are necessary to perform well in the caring professions. We have introduced systems and ways of working that do not reward those behaviours.
The UK has long been a hybrid country culturally: individualistic in some respects (but nowhere near as much as say the US), collectivist in others (but nowhere nears as some Asian countries), this dual personality has always created a tension but for a long time I think our relatively unique nature served us well imo. I think that balance has gone and it's no longer simply a question of 'training' British people to do those jobs, you don't 'teach' care and compassion in a workplace setting, you imbue it in people from an early age in the type of society you create both within and beyond your own four walls.
Have people over there noticed any improvement in their everyday life in the last year? Serious question, not wumming.
The Chancellor in tears on the front bench. What on earth is going on?
Good question and Politics aside there has been no improvement IMO. I know we have inflation figures regularly issued but quite frankly I believe them to be questionable.Have people over there noticed any improvement in their everyday life in the last year? Serious question, not wumming.