Morrissey and the Gurkas

13 Apr 2008

Morrissey and the Gurkas

Current mood:discontent

A recent Newsnight poll of white British adults found that 77 per cent felt that they could not criticise immigration without being labelled racist. Firstly let me state I emailled my local MP Gerald Kaufman to support the cause of Gurkas (world-famous Nepalese Gurkha soldiers who are an integral part of the British Army) see here
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/2786991.stm

I believe Gurkhas who have served in the army should be allowed to live in this country and become citizens, currently they are not able, see here
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7300521.stm
he passed my letter to secretary of state Des Brown and he wrote to me. The upshot of it all is that a Gurka with a chest full of bravery medals from WW2 would still have less rights to come, live, work and retire here than a retired old SS colonel because Germany is in the E.U.
If Britain had full employment then I would welcome foreign workers from anywhere and not just the E.U. but it is with incredulity that I read that only 2 countries in the E.U. of which Britain is one have not introduced a limit on the number of foreign workers from Eastern Europe allowed to work here. The argument goes that these Eastern European people work really hard, and many do, but that's because where their from you have no other choice, there isn't a generous social security net. They aren't somehow superior to their British colleagues but after working here for just one year they will then be eligible for all the social security benefits UK people enjoy. Whereas a Gurka who has served in the armed forces wouldn't immediately have those rights. The unemployment figure is rising now and I predict that this countries unemployment will continue to rise.  We should encourage British people to work by making work pay, i.e. cutting income tax for low earners, raising the minimum wage and allowing people to continue claiming an amount of jobseeker allowance and and housing benefit until they reach a decent income level, not cutting all benefit the moment they earn above a tiny amount. For now Gordon Brown thinks he's helping the economy with all this cheap labour but I predict an increasing unemployment rate in the future and a break down in public services which won't be able to cope with the increasing numbers of people in this country.   House prices have rocketing as demand far outstretches supply and many British first time buyers cannot get on the property ladder in the places that they grew up.  long term planning isn't Gordon Browns strong point, he sold off the country's gold reserves at the bottom of the market and taxed private  pension funds resulting in a collapse in private pension schemes.
since writting this blog the house of lords Economic Affairs Committee have commissioned a report on the economic Impact of immigration and it seems to agree with my view. it is availiable to view here
Http://www.parliament.the-stationery-office.com/pa/ld/ldeconaf.htm
 
In the report the Government's key claim that immigration increases Britain's overall gross domestic product (GDP) is dismissed as "irrelevant and misleading" and the Government's claim that, because we are an ageing population, we need immigrants to provide the wealth that will pay our pensions? is dismissed with contempt. It "does not stand up to scrutiny," says the report, for a reason that should be obvious to the Government: namely that immigrants themselves grow old and draw pensions.
Another reports states The number of Britons in work has dropped by nearly half a million since the onset of mass immigration from Eastern Europe. They provide the first evidence that British workers are being pushed out of the labour market by the arrival of hundreds of thousands of Poles and other Eastern European workers.
According to the figures given to MPs, the number born in this country in jobs fell from 24.4million in 2004 to 23.9 million last year.
It adds that since 2001 the decline in British-born workers has been 495,000, most of it after 2004.
The wave of Eastern European immigration came with the entry into the EU of Poland and seven other Eastern European countries at the beginning of April 2004.
Cambridge economist Professor Robert Rowthorn, who analysed the figures, said:
"It seems fairly obvious that immigration from the first wave of new EU member states has had a negative impact on native employment."
Why do the government refuse a cap on the migrants who came to this country from the E.U. But he government has launched a new points-based system for migrants from outside the E.U. low skilled workers from outside the EU will be barred for the foreseeable future. How is that right? How can you say non skilled workers from the E.U. are OK to work here but ones from outside aren't?
I agree with Morrissey when he said "England is a memory now. The gates are flooded and anybody can have access to England and join in."
He goes on: "Although I don't have anything against people from other countries, the higher the influx into England the more the British identity disappears. So the price is enormous. Travel to England and you have no idea where you are. It matters because the British identity is very attractive. I grew up into it and I find it very quaint and amusing. Other countries have held on to their basic identity, yet it seems to me that England was thrown away. it means saying goodbye to the Britain you once knew".
"You can't say, 'Everybody come into my house, sit on the bed, have what you like, do what you like.' It wouldn't work., The change in England is so rapid compared to the change in any other country".
"If you walk through Knightsbridge on any bland day of the week you won't hear an English accent.  You'll hear every accent under the sun apart from the British accent." 
I for might part can say that in East london where I live and Rusholme were I used to live if you go out and walk around you'll hear more people speaking a foriegn language than English.