The British government is to abandon its "open-door" policy to Eastern Europe by restricting the inflow of Romanians and Bulgarians when their countries join the EU in January.
In a dramatic U-turn that has been attacked as a sop to the anti-immigration lobby, Home Secretary John Reid will unveil plans to prevent thousands of people from Romania and Bulgaria from going to Britain to work. His move comes after sustained criticism that Polish immigrants are entering the country in unsustainable numbers.
The move is in stark contrast to the treatment of other new EU countries -- including Poland -- to which the UK allowed unlimited access when they joined in 2004. It also reflects political fears about the impact of immigration on working-class Britons.
Reid's plans have been drawn up despite furious opposition from Romanian community leaders, who have complained to British Prime Minister Tony Blair of a "denigrating campaign" against them in a leaked letter.
Senior Foreign Office officials are said to be concerned that the move is a backward step for EU enlargement, but the prime minister's office is said to favor Reid's view that restrictions are necessary to prevent a political backlash.
"The Home Office has made pretty clear its thinking that there needs to be restrictions," a senior source said.
Reid's plans have not yet been cleared by Cabinet colleagues and he is still finalizing them, but he plans to announce time-limited controls on the right of citizens from both countries to work in Britain when they join the EU.
He is expected to say that Britain will take a limited number of unskilled workers to carry out jobs such as fruit picking, but will not offer a general right to work.
Britain cannot legally stop citizens of any new EU countries from moving in, but denying the right to work would reduce the numbers wanting to come. The move is expected to be accompanied by enforcement measures to prevent people entering the black market.
Two former Foreign Office ministers on Saturday attacked the decision, while Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett suggested the debate was still on.
The letter, sent by senior Romanian figures in Britain to Downing Street and which was signed by a number of leading cultural and social organizations, claims that Romania is being unfairly treated following hostile media coverage.
Urging Blair to "follow your beliefs," it says: "We are deeply concerned about the denigrating campaign of the past weeks in the British media that does significant harm to the true image of Romania. The numbers of Romanians who intend to come to work in the UK after January 1, 2007, have been highly exaggerated."
Republican US lawmakers on Friday criticized US President Joe Biden’s administration after sanctioned Chinese telecoms equipment giant Huawei unveiled a laptop this week powered by an Intel artificial intelligence (AI) chip. The US placed Huawei on a trade restriction list in 2019 for contravening Iran sanctions, part of a broader effort to hobble Beijing’s technological advances. Placement on the list means the company’s suppliers have to seek a special, difficult-to-obtain license before shipping to it. One such license, issued by then-US president Donald Trump’s administration, has allowed Intel to ship central processors to Huawei for use in laptops since 2020. China hardliners
Conjoined twins Lori and George Schappell, who pursued separate careers, interests and relationships during lives that defied medical expectations, died this month in Pennsylvania, funeral home officials said. They were 62. The twins, listed by Guinness World Records as the oldest living conjoined twins, died on April 7 at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, obituaries posted by Leibensperger Funeral Homes of Hamburg said. The cause of death was not detailed. “When we were born, the doctors didn’t think we’d make 30, but we proved them wrong,” Lori said in an interview when they turned 50, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported. The
RAMPAGE: A Palestinian man was left dead after dozens of Israeli settlers searching for a missing 14-year-old boy stormed a village in the Israeli-occupied West Bank US President Joe Biden on Friday said he expected Iran to attack Israel “sooner, rather than later” and warned Tehran not to proceed. Asked by reporters about his message to Iran, Biden simply said: “Don’t,” underscoring Washington’s commitment to defend Israel. “We are devoted to the defense of Israel. We will support Israel. We will help defend Israel and Iran will not succeed,” he said. Biden said he would not divulge secure information, but said his expectation was that an attack could come “sooner, rather than later.” Israel braced on Friday for an attack by Iran or its proxies as warnings grew of
A prominent Christian leader has allegedly been stabbed at the altar during a Mass yesterday in southwest Sydney. Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel was saying Mass at Christ The Good Shepherd Church in Wakeley just after 7pm when a man approached him at the altar and allegedly stabbed toward his head multiple times. A live stream of the Mass shows the congregation swarm forward toward Emmanuel before it was cut off. The church leader gained prominence during the COVID-19 pandemic, amassing a large online following, Officers attached to Fairfield City police area command attended a location on Welcome Street, Wakeley following reports a number