Immigration news

A committee of MPs has issued a report claiming that the UK's immigration statistics are 'not fit for purpose'. It has called for the 'e-borders' system which was first proposed by Tony Blair in 2005 to be implemented as soon as possible.

Immigration is a politically sensitive issue in the UK. In 2010, the Conservative Party leader, David Cameron stood for election promising to cut immigration to below 100,000 annually. Mr Cameron became prime minister at the head of a coalition in which the Conservatives were the senior partner. This government has taken various steps to cut immigration.

A recent advertising campaign run by the UK's Home Office has caused a public disagreement between senior ministers in the UK's Coalition government. The campaign, which ran for a week and ended on 28th July 2013, was intended to persuade illegal immigrants to 'go home'.

The Business Secretary Vince Cable said that the adverts seemed to have been designed 'to create a sense of fear in the British population'. Mr Cable said that Liberal Democrat ministers in the Coalition government had not been consulted about the campaign.

The Prime Minister of the UK, David Cameron, has been criticised by a range of business leaders after agreeing that immigration was 'a constant drain' on the UK's economy.

The Prime Minister was answering questions at the Bentley car plant in Crewe, North West England, when he was asked why he did nothing to stop immigration which was a 'constant drain' on the economy. He replied 'I basically agree with you…in the last decade, we have had an immigration policy that's completely lax. The pressure it puts on our public services and communities is too great'.

The leader of a local council in London has said he is 'horrified' by the Home Office's decision to pay for mobile advertising boards to be driven around his borough warning illegal immigrants that they should 'go home or face arrest'.

The pilot scheme was launched on 22nd July 2013. Vans displaying large advertising boards are being driven around six boroughs of London in an attempt to persuade illegal immigrants to leave the country voluntarily.

The UK's Prime Minister David Cameron has been criticised for comments he made about immigration on an official visit to a car factory on 22nd July 2013.

The Australian Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) issued a secret report in 2011 which highlighted the ease with which Indian applicants for Australian visas were able to commit identity fraud. The report said that, until Indian systems for issuing passports are improved, there is little that DIAC can do to wipe out visa fraud by Indian applicants.