Iain Duncan Smith apparently thinks jobs should be offered to British people before migrants

[electra]

Surely he might as well adopt the BNP slogan?

So he thinks something, big deal, is he actually doing anything? Or is this much like DC hoping society will disapprove of runaway dads enough to save him the effort of tackling the problem in any way?

I think this is simply noising off about something, where he will act like the work permit visa restrictions have suddenly been invented and put his fingers in his ears any time anyone points out he hasn't really changed anything. Either that or he is trying to blame the impending unemployment surge on immigrants and the businessmen who hire them. Just political posturing surely, or have I missed something practical he is doing?

On the issue itself, I don't think it would be unreasonable to hire a UK citizen over a non-UK one if they were equally well qualified. I doubt there are many situations where people are hired just because they are not British, especially as we don't recognise qualifications from many countries. Hiring outside the EU requires you to prove you cannot find an appropriate Brit already. We need to work on making the British public more employable, surely. I don't mean more people to university but more like bringing the least qualified up to higher standard, even if just in English and Maths.

The lazy native/ Fabby foreigner is of course attractive as one of the few racism that are publicly acceptable but dont really bear scrutiny.

Stats

We always hear how great the poles and czechs are but they have a higher unemployment rate than Brits!

somethingwitty I see your point, it could be argued though that it IS a level playing field since all of us could save up our UK wages and then move to Romania with its cheaper living costs if we wanted.

Some of our folk please hidden.

This one is hard.

For a start plenty of people I knew first as immigrants are now here with famillies to support, homes to pay off and settled; often with Bristish wives.

Why should they be denied a chance to work becuase they have a surname that sounds Eastern European?

OTOH retiring later + high youth unemployment is a jobs bombshell and it would be nice if we could say to new immigrants that whilst they are welcome in shortage roles, there are peple here permanently who need jobs first.

But it would descend into raciam at teh hands of the horrid so not doable IMO

There is no getting away from the fact that IDS has encouraged employers to discriminate. I agree that it will stir up racism. It's a very divisive policy.

Callisto, there is nothing pathetic in pointing out that it sounds like a BNP policy. One of their well-known mantras is 'British jobs for British workers'. That's a fact - and that is effectively what he was saying.

British people should get the jobs first. Not many will take the very low wages though. Mass immigration is needed by governments to drive down wages, and keep politicians 'freinds' in business, in profit!

What's wrong with British jobs for British workers? I'm sure that mantra is heard all over europe. "Greek jobs for Greek workers!!", "Spanish jobs for Spanish workers!!", etc;...............Give us a break!

Electra - One of Gordon Browns mantras was 'British jobs for British workers' - was he also channeling the BNP?

So that's the Tories and Labour -

Who needs the BNP eh?

Comp depends on your description of Britih fior a start; the horrids would simply use it as excuse to refuse jobs to anyone whose name is not Smythe ('horrids' is my new fave term for a whole group, it works very well).

Then someone who ahs been here a few eyars, settled- still an immigrant; might have a family, even a Britsih one; should they not have a job?

It just isn;t as simple as the mantra. I get that people continuing to move into a country in amess looking for work is a negative but IIRC far fewer people come now anyway.

here

I'm not really sure why IDS is getting picked on over it.

Labour said it first.

"far fewer people come now anyway."

Errrr....no, more are.

<a class="break-all" href="http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=www.ukvisaandimmigration.co.uk/news/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/UK-Net-Migration.jpg&imgrefurl=www.ukvisaandimmigration.co.uk/news/uks-net-migration-increases-student-visas-work-permits-081.php&usg=__Et1FJvrCbvZpATQGvsdx1p9cwww=&h=247&w=446&sz=26&hl=en&start=0&zoom=1&tbnid=iqD0Cm1Qq7u5QM:&tbnh=104&tbnw=187&ei=mgEOTu2RPMaq8AOl4ZmSAg&prev=/search%3Fq%3Duk%2Bimmigration%2B2010%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26sa%3DN%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:en-US:official%26biw%3D1024%26bih%3D590%26tbm%3Disch&um=1&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=496&vpy=99&dur=3425&hovh=167&hovw=302&tx=142&ty=71&page=1&ndsp=12&ved=1t:429,r:6,s:0" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">graphy

They left during the recession then com back during a recovery, they have no loyalty to this country.

Solidarity, yes I do remember him saying that - it was equally as controversial then iirc...

Perhaps Solidarity but ther were Mn threads at the time

He has said it agin so.....

Somethingwitty are you certain? It certainly doesn#t reflect the reality I see around me and I doubt there are up to date stats but anyway that site is trying to persuade people to come into the UK and pay them money; hardly a reliable source! If I tried to use that in my dissertation I;d have it booted out the door sharpsih.

As long as the immigrant is working here legally and is the best person for the job and prepared to work at a legal wage level then why should an employer choose a Brit?

In fact, I think the real solution is to reform the tax/benefit system so that Brits have an incentive to work. That is something IDS has spoken a lot about but it seems to have slipped off the agenda.

This discussion is irrelevant.

The reason IDS said this is because the Tories have ruined the economy. We now have massive unemployment and a stagnating economy, directly due to their government and destructive, stupid policies.

"Immigrants" are the scapegoats they are trying to blame for the unemployment figures.

The TORIES ruined the economy! You can argue about the measures they are taking to sort it all you like, but they didn't do it.

Im tired of going over the same things again and again.

Yes, before the tories got in, the economy was growing strongly. We were well on the way to recovery.

what a knob ids is. he can't do anything about it whatever he thinks.

Why should employers be forced to take one of our dolelites work long, harder and for less
We we got our extension done we really wanted to hire some one British but sadly the first thing they wanted to talk about is when they have their tea break and that they didn't start till 10 and left at 4 and didn't work in the rain Ect Ect to be honest it was a recurring theme.

We need up hiring a polish builder who did it in half the time because he came at 5 am and left at 9 put up flood lights and charged 20% less and brought his own tea for his tea break

For so many years you here the work shy moan their are no jobs I say whatever immigrants never seem to be out of work the fact it their willing to work it mc Donald's and clean the underground, but you ask the average dolelite if they want a job at the big mac they will say he'll no,
My oh work always have problems finding cleaners and when they do have vacancies the only ones who wernt made to come by the job centre is immigrants.

just racism and populism
IDS should have the balls to admit that most of the 'furriners' are from the EU, there's nothing he can do about it unless we leave the EU, which they have no intention of doing, so why mention it at all unless it's just to appeal to the right wing racists in the party
He's the one in power, how about approaching the EU to change the rules instead of sounding off in the papers

i think it would be great if there were no borders in the world, no restrictions to work, just freedom to travel wherever you want to. what would really be the problem with that

Hhlimbo really

The amount of long term unemployed was highest under the roll up roll up get your fee money here labour government.

How shameful these people are kept people on welfare for 10 years then allow their children to go on to do the same

Labour thought it would keep people stum by paying them off with benefits they forgot one thing the unemployed seldom vote

If any one here thinks its ok to keep generations of a family on welfare you are really and the up shot is that now these people are on welfare so long their not fit for the work place.

Yes, portofino, but I didn't hear the Tories moaning when everything was booming. They didn't challenge the way the economy was being run until it went tits up. And let's not forget this was an international crisis, affecting every country in the developed world of whatever political complexion. George W Bush was in charge in the States where the first domino toppled.

rubbish, Maypole. Labour tried lots of schemes to tackle the long term worklessness that was the legacy of the Thatcher and Major governments. Blair was forever in the headlines going on about reform after reform after reform. That's why job centres were rebranded job centre plus.

And don't you think blaming the poor for being poor in the middle of a recession is quite daft?