remainers, do you have any concerns with immigration? genuine question

[Grassgreendashhabi]

I was wondering without labelling or being accused of xenophobic etc. If remainers have issues with the uncontrollable immigration.

I am a leaver but disgusted by the acts of some people with their hatred views,

Do you see immigration as 100% ok or do you think that there is an issue for reform to our immigration.

I'm asking a genuine question, not looking for statistics etc just your personal views

My family are mostly remain but do think that immigration needs more control,

Agree BrokenBiscuit, completely.

By contrast, someone with a family & home to run cannot. - indeed once u factor in all the other agency dodgyness with transport etc as well.

What we really need is greater investment in our own young people, but I don't see it happening in the immediate future. I'd be very happy to pay higher taxes in order to improve the life chances of the poorest in our society

I agree, but we have as I keep saying crap employers who for decades scrapped decent apprentice schemes etc with actual jobs at the end.

Its so much easier to cry that kids haven't go the right skills (short memories of electorate) , then its "we need more visas and/or make use of the EU market".

Again its a UK employer problem!

Agree BreakingDad, we've ignored the vocational side of education for too long.

It is fact that not everyone is (or indeed wants to be) a 'high achiever'.
Not everyone is academically bent.

Education as a whole needs to be addressed, but definitely needs to be value for the non academic - those that will fill the traditionally working class roles.

I think every country needs immigrants I just think they should all have to put into the system for a minimum term before being able to take back EU included

So no access to social housing, any kind of benefits , medical bills should be covered by private health insurance etc, once say a period of 5 years is reached and they decide to apply for residency then after its approved they can have same rights as uk citizen

Not including refugees of course, they need helped immediately

I'm an immigrant (non-EU), with the Master's degree (non-UK) and UK's professional qualification. Have always paid the highest rate of tax. Every single one of my immigrant friends (EU and non-EU) are educated at least to the Master's, some have PhDs.

No, I do not have a problem with immigration. I do have a problem with the criminals moving around freely, but then UK is very well placed (geographically) to protect itself from such people.

I am an immigrant myself (non-EU)...
Yeah, I do have a wee problem. I am afraid that Europe is under press ure to take all of world's refugees (60 million and counting).
It's selfish, because I don't want to risk losing my pleasant (high income country life style.

Romanians or Bulgarians don't worry me, though. Or non-EU migrants (not forced migrants) getting into UK under the rules already in operation.

I am afraid that Europe is under press ure to take all of world's refugees (60 million and counting).

But to me that is because of the wrong mix of action and inaction in the middle east. We needed peackeepers in syria ages ago before the place got trashed, create at least some demilitarised areas, its just imploding.

Yes, Mango I completely agree that the focus shouldn't only be on academic education. The vocational side of our education system has been neglected far too long.

Employers will inevitably want to keep their costs down, and training up young people who don't have skills and are not yet "work ready" is obviously a lot more expensive and time consuming than employing a migrant with ready-made skills and an understanding of how the workplace works. I think we need better financial incentives for employers to encourage them to take on apprentices or young trainees. However, I think we also need to look at what schools are doing at a much earlier stage to prepare our young people for future employment.

Definitely.

There is so much wrong, and it has been ignored by both parties.

Lots of nice museums and pretty regenerated town centres etc all EU funded, but no real, proper investment where it counts.

EU immigrant here

Free movement in the EU was, I believe, fairly balanced before some of the poorer Eastern European countries joined in the noughties. It's to be expected that people from poorer countries will cease the opportunity to work in countries with opportunities, which many did. Britain is one of the obvious choices as lots of people learn English as a second language in school. Saying that, many from the former East moved to Germany, and Scandinaia too, not just the UK. This has created in imbalance where fewer Brits or Germans migrate to, let's say Poland than vv.

I don't mind this, i have to say, i love meeting and working with people from all over and genuinely find life more interesting this way. I do agree that successive British governments did not fundamentally invest in infrastructure. I believe it is a shame that it is becoming ever more difficult for native Brits to train as nurses and doctors because these options now are mainly open to young people from privileged backgrounds,this contributes massively to social inequality in the UK.

But that's is NOT the fault of the EU or of EU immigrants, blame British politicians and the British public voting for crappy governments instead.

Brits really do have a nerve being all uppity regarding immigration with a not too distant past of taking over countries throughout the world and exploiting colonies all over. I know this was kind of 'the done thing' during those times but if you just think for a minute about how until fairly recently Brits pretty much invaded continents and destroyed the lives of innocent people...... people all over are still paying the price for this. They were not 'good immigrants' are they?

*were they

I agree Britian in some way does have a nerve as you say

But we have to live in the now and in the future. Immigration from the commonwealth was very high after the war, it suited Britian and should people from the commonwealth then not have more rights to come here than say someone from Italy

Or should it be equal ?

Immigrants come here -> pay tax -> more money in the pot -> yet no investment in infrastructure.

As plenty PP's have said, this is not an immigration problem, it's lack of investment.

And can I just add that immigration IS controlled, it's only within the EU people have got the freedom of movement.

Britain does not hand out benefits to new arrivals, they have to have been here for a certain amount of time first (I think it's 3 or 6 months).

When I moved here I couldn't even gain access to the NHS without proving my eligibility, and I'm from an EU country.

It's not as easy to just wander into the country and gain immediate access to everything as the media makes it out to be.

I don't have concern about immigration per se.
I have concern about illegal immigration who then end up on the black market.

I have concern about immigrants being exploited by unscrupulous employers.
I have concern about large numbers of outsiders overwhelming small places that just aren't used to outsiders, and therefore become defensive and resentful. I say that as a similar outsider who grew up in a small place.
I have concern that lack of investment which means life is tough and locals feel justified in blaming the incomers.
This isn't just a UK situation, and it isn't the fault of the EU - it happens the world over.

I understand perfectly that it is only EU migrants that have free movement, and non EU immigration is controlled.

It is precisely the point that EU migration is uncapped/uncontrolled that is the problem.

Immigration in itself is not an issue, it is the uncertainty of numbers and the inequality of the immigration.

Sorry, that post was in reply to penisbeaker.

The vocational side of our education system has been neglected far too long.

Again you can place much of the blame for this at the door of politicians who are hung up on an A level 'Gold Standard. An example is the
Tomlinson Report of 2004. This IMO was a good report but Tony Blair just didn't want to know. This attitude has bedeviled English education for decades so we do quite well by our more academic children but have a long tail of underachievement of the less academic.
I don't even know whether the Tories commissioned any reports - Gove and Morgan seemed to make up education policy on the back of an envelope.

I can honestly say I have no issue with immigration.

I have never lived in an area with problems - none that I have seen or experienced, obviously not saying there is none, just that I have never experienced any.

I have never had a personal issue with any immigrant - not on the street, in housing, in the shops, anywhere. I have struggled to understand a few, but that's probably more my issue than theirs - I struggle to understand the Newcastle accent just as much

I have worked with people of Jamaican, Fijian, French, Dutch, Malaysian, American, Canadian and German nationality. Some were great, some were wankers. But so were the English/Welsh/Scottish and Irish colleagues.

Maybe my head is in the clouds, but personal view of immigration is a shrug. It doesn't bother me at all. I think the country does have the room and does have opportunities. If someone wants to 'better' themselves or their situation by moving to another country then I say more power to them - don't we all want what's best for us?

I'd move to another country in a heartbeat - Canada (I wish), Spain, Canaries, Cyprus. It's a dream that I hope one day becomes a reality.

Agree with Breaking Dad. on all points. The problem is employers. Training on the job used to be part of the job. Now they want ppl to come ready trained.

I do blame successive govts on education peregrina, definitely.
Started with Tony Blair devaluing vocational & skill based education and tradespeople.

I have no issues with immigration and voted Remain.

I also think taxes must rise so there can be adequate funding of public services.

Mango Thank you for the links you have posted here, really informative. I have been trying to explain attitudes to migration in Blackpool (deprived area, low wage economy, poor housing stock, now around 11% East European) and your article about Boston expresses it perfectly. The only thing I might add to it is the loss of local shops and businesses as so much of the money earned is being sent "home" rather than spent in the local economy which has a further negative impact on the native community

I'm ok with EU immigration, and completely agree with Kleine above.

I do have a problem with non-EU immigration controls in this country, they are far stricter than necessary. Did you know that just a few years ago they did away with the whole category of post-study work visas? Students from all around the world come to study in this country. We take the time to train them and give them undergraduate and postgraduate degrees, only to send them away when they complete their studies. You would be very VERY hard pressed to find an entry level job with the earning threshold to qualify for a work visa, so our international graduates no longer have any option to remain in the UK to work, pay tax, and spend money in our economy. And even IF they do get the option to work here they are not entitled to any benefits (except SMP/Mat allowance) and have to pay a surcharge to access the NHS, despite working and paying taxes. In the 6 years I've lived here I've only seen it get more restrictive. It's not cutting down on the number of extra-EU immigrants, it's just making the system far less fair to the ones who stick it out to get here. And I guarantee that if it became as difficult for EU workers to come to the UK we would be down 1/4 of our NHS staff in a shot.

Some UK hospitals are recruiting non-EU migrants because they stay where they're needed, in the hospital they're recruited to. Over 200 Filipino nurses recruited this year in Lincolnshire. EU workers soon move away to London and other cities.