Immigration has "cost" parts of Britain, impacting on jobs, wages and even family ties, the Prime Minister admitted yesterday.
Gordon Brown said there are "significant" variations in how immigration has been felt around the country and accepted people's fears that it has undermined wages, affected job prospects for children and whether families can live near each other.
In his first speech on the issue since entering Number 10, Mr Brown also announced a review of student visas to clamp down on those abusing the system and bogus colleges that allow migrants to slip in to the UK illegally.
And he pledged to create thousands more jobs for British workers by reducing the number of skilled occupations that are open to foreign workers.
The comments come a week after Alan Johnson, the Home Secretary, said the Government had been inept over immigration and that it has impacted on communities.
But the Tories labelled the speech, which was predominantly re-announcements, as "hollow" while employer groups warned against sending out a message that it was hard for skilled migrants to get a job in the UK.
Mr Brown's speech will be seen as a positioning in advance of the general election as he attacked the "lazy elitism" that as dismissed immigration as an issue.
He said immigration must not be made a "taboo" issue tackled only by fringe parties, but should be "a question to be dealt with at the heart of our politics".
However, there was not a single mention in the speech of the issue of the UK population potentially hitting 70 million despite Mr Brown reportedly insisting new measures would stop it reaching that level.
Speaking to an audience in West London, the Prime Minister acknowledged that immigration is felt differently depending on where you live.
He said some employers would welcome a more diverse workforce but "if you work in a sector where wages are falling or an area where jobs are scarce, immigration will feel very different".
Equally those needing a plumber or doctor may think immigration has a benefit, but "if you're living in a town which hasn't seen much inward migration before, you may worry about whether immigration will undermine wages and the job prospects of your children – and whether they will be able to get housing anywhere near you", he said.
In an attempt to assure voters that he understands their concerns over immigration, he insisted: "If people ask me, do I get it? Yes. I get it."
He said the UK was a "something for something, nothing for nothing" society.
The review on student visas, reporting next month, will examine what level of the NVQ (national vocational qualification) merited a visa for a foreign student. It will also examine the case for mandatory English language testing for all student visas and cutting the number of hours foreign students can work part-time – currently 20 a week – to see whether temporary students are taking jobs that could be filled by young British workers
There are concerns that thousands of migrants are in the UK illegally after coming in under student visas to attend bogus courses or overstaying.
Mr Brown also announced plans for a reduction of thousands in the number of posts on the Government's shortage occupation list, for which foreign workers can gain access to the UK because of a lack of local people with the skills to do the jobs.
Hospital consultants, civil engineers, aircraft engineers and ship's officers are being removed from the list of in-demand occupations which Britain needs to recruit from abroad.
And he said that during next year, the list would be narrowed further, with the Migration Advisory Committee considering the case for removing more engineering roles, skilled chefs and care workers.
Chris Grayling, the shadow home secretary, said: "Gordon Brown's speech had a completely hollow ring to it.
"This is the Government that tried to cover up a deliberate policy of increasing immigration and the Prime Minister's comments show that he has no idea about how to deal with the whole question of immigration now."
Chris Huhne, the Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman, said: "Gordon Brown is attempting to shut the stable door long after the horse has bolted."
The Institution of Civil Engineers warned that limiting employers' access to skilled workers from outside the EU could delay progress on major projects like the Government's planned new generation of nuclear power stations. continues here
Gordon Brown said there are "significant" variations in how immigration has been felt around the country and accepted people's fears that it has undermined wages, affected job prospects for children and whether families can live near each other.
In his first speech on the issue since entering Number 10, Mr Brown also announced a review of student visas to clamp down on those abusing the system and bogus colleges that allow migrants to slip in to the UK illegally.
And he pledged to create thousands more jobs for British workers by reducing the number of skilled occupations that are open to foreign workers.
The comments come a week after Alan Johnson, the Home Secretary, said the Government had been inept over immigration and that it has impacted on communities.
But the Tories labelled the speech, which was predominantly re-announcements, as "hollow" while employer groups warned against sending out a message that it was hard for skilled migrants to get a job in the UK.
Mr Brown's speech will be seen as a positioning in advance of the general election as he attacked the "lazy elitism" that as dismissed immigration as an issue.
He said immigration must not be made a "taboo" issue tackled only by fringe parties, but should be "a question to be dealt with at the heart of our politics".
However, there was not a single mention in the speech of the issue of the UK population potentially hitting 70 million despite Mr Brown reportedly insisting new measures would stop it reaching that level.
Speaking to an audience in West London, the Prime Minister acknowledged that immigration is felt differently depending on where you live.
He said some employers would welcome a more diverse workforce but "if you work in a sector where wages are falling or an area where jobs are scarce, immigration will feel very different".
Equally those needing a plumber or doctor may think immigration has a benefit, but "if you're living in a town which hasn't seen much inward migration before, you may worry about whether immigration will undermine wages and the job prospects of your children – and whether they will be able to get housing anywhere near you", he said.
In an attempt to assure voters that he understands their concerns over immigration, he insisted: "If people ask me, do I get it? Yes. I get it."
He said the UK was a "something for something, nothing for nothing" society.
The review on student visas, reporting next month, will examine what level of the NVQ (national vocational qualification) merited a visa for a foreign student. It will also examine the case for mandatory English language testing for all student visas and cutting the number of hours foreign students can work part-time – currently 20 a week – to see whether temporary students are taking jobs that could be filled by young British workers
There are concerns that thousands of migrants are in the UK illegally after coming in under student visas to attend bogus courses or overstaying.
Mr Brown also announced plans for a reduction of thousands in the number of posts on the Government's shortage occupation list, for which foreign workers can gain access to the UK because of a lack of local people with the skills to do the jobs.
Hospital consultants, civil engineers, aircraft engineers and ship's officers are being removed from the list of in-demand occupations which Britain needs to recruit from abroad.
And he said that during next year, the list would be narrowed further, with the Migration Advisory Committee considering the case for removing more engineering roles, skilled chefs and care workers.
Chris Grayling, the shadow home secretary, said: "Gordon Brown's speech had a completely hollow ring to it.
"This is the Government that tried to cover up a deliberate policy of increasing immigration and the Prime Minister's comments show that he has no idea about how to deal with the whole question of immigration now."
Chris Huhne, the Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman, said: "Gordon Brown is attempting to shut the stable door long after the horse has bolted."
The Institution of Civil Engineers warned that limiting employers' access to skilled workers from outside the EU could delay progress on major projects like the Government's planned new generation of nuclear power stations. continues here
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