COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL
GOVERNMENT News Release (140) issued by The Government News Network
on 11 June 2008
Communities
Secretary Hazel Blears today set out the range of actions the
Government is taking to manage migration, maximise the benefits
for the whole of the UK and minimise the negative impacts.
This includes a £12m programme of improvements to the way
migration data are collected; a fund to help all local services
manage the transitional impacts of migration; and tougher
penalties on those that exploit vulnerable workers and undercut
the minimum wage.
Across Government actions are being taken to deliver a robust,
fair migration system that will underpin Britain's long
tradition of benefiting from people coming here helping this
country to prosper and of providing protection to people fleeing
persecution, but equally protecting Britain's borders from
those who do not have a right to be here.
The full breadth of government's work is for the first time
brought together in Managing the Impacts of Migration: a Cross
Government Approach published today. It looks at the national
context for migration to the UK and the benefits it brings. It
then examines the local impacts of migration on our communities
and services and sets out the Government's programme of
current and future work to support local government and its
partners in maximising the benefits of migration.
The Government's commitments to managing migration focus on
five key areas:
* Strengthening our borders. We have created a single borders
force with new powers to target those coming here illegally,
electronic controls to count people in and out of the country and
the introduction of ID cards for all foreign nationals. A new
points based system will allow us to select those most able to
make a positive contribution to the UK.
* Improving population data by making changes to the way in which
we record the number of migrants coming here and where they
settle. We are supporting the Office for National Statistics, who
are working with local Government to ensure we have the most
accurate, up to date data that effectively capture local
population change. New figures will be used to inform the 3 year
funding settlement for Local Government in 2011.
* Providing funding where needed to help manage the transitional
impacts of migration. The Home Office Green Paper on The Path to
Citizenship, published in February 2008, set out a proposal to set
up a fund to manage the transitional impacts of migration. Money
for the fund will be raised through increases to certain fees for
immigration applications. The fund aims to be operating from April
2009 and may be spent on building the capacity of local service
providers to manage the impacts of migration. For example, it
could be spent on improving mapping of communities and local data;
on information websites which provide information for migrants
coming to the UK; or on English language training or
interpretation services. However, this list is not exhaustive and
we would expect the money to be spent on a wide range of issues
according to local need. The Government has already made
additional resources available - such as for schools experiencing
growth in pupil numbers.
* Protecting workers: People who do come here to live and work
have a right to be treated fairly. The overwhelming majority of
employers are responsible but in some sectors employers are
undercutting minimum wage and exploiting migrant workers. This
leaves migrant workers vulnerable and can also leave British
workers struggling to compete. We are toughening the action that
can be taken against unscrupulous employers who knowingly hire
illegal workers as well as commencing a sector by sector
enforcement of the National Minimum Wage starting with the hotel industry.
* Promoting integration. Ensuring that migrants are part of
strong cohesive communities. The Government has rebalanced its
community cohesion strategy to put a major new focus on mapping of
local issues to devise local solutions, moving away from a one
size fits all approach. This emphasises the role of national
Government in providing a framework for local authorities to build
cohesion and a shared sense of local belonging and work to build
integration. The Government framework includes guidance on where
translation is appropriate, greater emphasis on English language
learning, information packs for migrants, citizen days and work to
tackle misconceptions of migrants that can lead to tensions. This
has been supported by £50m cohesion funding over three years.
Communities Secretary Hazel Blears will say:
"Too often debates around migration are polarised around
stark headlines - we end up with one group calling for closed
borders at any cost, another refusing to acknowledge that
migration brings any challenges. Successful migration policy
achieves a balance between the two.
"To compete in the global economy we need the skills of
migrants alongside the further upskilling of the settled
population. We have the systems in place that will attract the
right people with the right skills and will take more effective
action against those coming here illegally. We need to be clear
about the rights and responsibilities of people coming here to
live and work. We will support the places and people that are
adjusting to changes in their populations
"The precise difference that migration makes to local places
and people varies from town to town. Some communities can readily
see the benefits, some people have concerns about pressures on
public services and pressure on the labour market; in other places
it is the rate and scale of change which is the cause for concern,
whilst for others the real challenges will arise if net migration
reduces. That is why local responses are so important.
"Across Government we are committed to managing migration in
the round - maximising the positives and addressing the
challenges. We are delivering a migration system that is well
managed and fair and supporting local authorities in responding to change."
It is in our interests to support economic migration and to take
a mature practical approach to managing the positive and negative
consequences and that is why we are setting out the practical
actions that we are taking nationally and locally.
Hazel Blears also announced today that the first Specialist
Cohesion Team Pilot will be in Breckland. The Government's
response to the Commission on Integration and Cohesion's
report said that we would be piloting additional support to local
authorities facing cohesion challenges particularly those areas
facing rapid change. Breckland has been chosen as the pilot on
Migration issues. The aim of the pilot is primarily to share good
practice, both in terms of identifying what is already working
well within Breckland, and also in identifying what good practice
from elsewhere might be applicable within the area. The specialist
cohesion teams will seek to apply their expertise in coaching
partnerships on building strong and cohesive communities in which
everyone regardless of race or faith has a real stake in their
community and where services are tailored to meet local needs.
Activity will be focussed on ensuring integration, community
cohesion and conflict resolution.
Notes to editors
The Impacts plan sets out current and future government action on:
Strong borders:
* A new Single Border Agency and the e-borders programme allowing
Government to count people in and out for the first time;
* The Points Based System selecting those migrants who can make a
positive contribution to the UK;
* Green Paper on Earned Citizenship - ensuring people coming to
the UK earn the right to stay and to become citizens;
Supporting local services:
* A cross-government programme of work led by ONS to improve
migration and population statistics - £12m investment.
* £10 million funding for schools through the Exceptional
Circumstances Grant for schools with a rapid growth in pupil
numbers or a significant number of children who have English as an
additional language.
* The Transitional Impacts of Migration Fund to which all local
services have access to build capacity to manage migration issues.
* A programme of research on the drivers of migration and the
local economic impact to help local services plan better for
future changes.
* Work by Homeless Link, funded by CLG to reduce rough sleeping
among recent EU migrants in London.
* Reviewing the operation of the private rented sector including
House of Multiple Occupation.
* Working with the Improvement and Development Agency on the
Migration Excellence Programme to share good practice among local
authorities and promote peer mentoring.
* Helping Neighbourhood Policing teams identify and engage with
incoming and emerging communities
* Developing proposals on how local partners can prioritise
public funding for ESOL to support community cohesion.
Protecting workers:
* Immigration Crime Partnerships and a new civil penalty system
for those knowingly employing illegal migrant workers;
* Information on migrant workers rights and the NMW campaign;
* Increasing investment in the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate;
* Work of the Vulnerable Worker Enforcement Forum due to report shortly
Cohesion and Integration:
* £50 million over 3 years spent on community cohesion.
* Development of a single online portal to give local authorities
easy access to latest good practice on promoting cohesion and the
announcement of our first pilot Specialist Cohesion Team in Breckland.
* Review of Migrant Integration Policy in the UK (including a
feasibility study of the proposal for an integration agency)
published alongside the impacts plan.
News Releases: http://www.communities.gov.uk/newsroom