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Figures from the United Kingdom's National Insurance bureau show that immigrants do not abuse Britain's welfare system. For 2006, only 2.4% of all immigrants made a claim for unemployment benefits. The Conservatives are proposing annual limits on immigration and reacted to the report by stating that they believe the figures show the government is soft on immigration. Immigrants contribute about Ј2.5 billion to the UK treasury annually.

Britain's Electronic Borders program has received a Ј1.2 billion earmark to fund its activities. Also called the e-Borders Program, airlines and ferry companies must submit detailed passenger and crew information prior to departure from or arrival to the UK. A persons name, sex, date of birth, nationality, type of travel document and the date of issue are among the required data currently collected.

The Border and Immigration Agency (BIA) has just completed the trial phase of the program. 29 million passengers were screened, resulting in 13,000 alerts being issued and over 1,000 arrests. Under the proposed UK Borders Bill, agents of the BIA will have increased powers to search and detain suspects.

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The Irish Training and Employment Authority (FБS) quarterly labor market commentary has been released. It analyzes recent labor market trends and projects a short-term outlook into 2008. In the forecast, the majority of the new jobs will come from the services sector with an expected decline in construction over the next 18 months. 60,000 more jobs will be created for 2007, with an additional 23,000 in 2008. The long-term unemployment rate was at an historic low of 1.2% for the first quarter of 2007.

Poland is experiencing a serious labor crunch as it prepares for the Euro 2012 football championship. Hundreds of thousands of Poles have left the country for higher-paying jobs, leaving the construction industry short-handed to build 600 miles of roadway, five airports, new hotels, and three new stadiums.

Last month, Poland's Minister for Labor and Social Policy traveled to India to discuss ways to facilitate migration. Poland is also looking to China, Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus to fulfill its needs. The government is developing a "plan of action" to open the labor market while at the same ensuring that "immigrant enclaves" don't form and cause political and social problems.

The Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs (MOIA) has been negotiating with Sweden, Poland, Belgium, and France to make migration easier for skilled Indian professionals. India has also signed an agreement with the International Organization for Migration to begin a trial project in several other EU Member States. It will assess the needs of each country and create a resource center to help skilled professionals, health workers and other semi-skilled workers from India to enter the EU labor market.

The Australian Migration Occupations in Demand List (MODL) has been updated with about a dozen new occupations. The MODL includes occupations and specializations identified by the government that are in short supply in Australia. Occupations on the MODL, either at the time a General Skilled Migration application is lodged or when it is assessed, qualify an applicant for a points bonus.