If you look at fact, the most enterprising people in the UK, much more so than the indigenous white population, are the immigrant Indians, Chinese and the African-Asians (refugees of the \x91Africanisation Policies\x92 of East Africa during the 1960s-70s). It need not take an expert in labour economics to realise that enterprising individuals do not only create jobs for themselves, but their businesses create jobs for indigenous people, and also, wealth for the country as a whole, wealth so that perhaps all \x91spongers\x92 can live a comfortable life.

I do believe that there are \x91spongers\x92; both ingenious and immigrant. I do have qualms with the current immigration policies, but do believe that many of the arguments presented above are suitable only for \x91The Sun\x92. There is no empirical evidence to suggest that immigration leads to a fall in wages or a fall in employment, (I would suggest a read of Cuban immigration into Miami in Angrist and Krueger, 1999). However, I do believe that the current policies are too lenient, and that if we are not careful, we will give this country away to immigrants. The idea of testing does seem plausible, and I would argue that we should only allow immigrants into the UK if they have specific skill sets of which we have significant shortages; this is more or less the basis of the Australian immigration policy.

If you look at fact, the most enterprising people in the UK, much more so than the indigenous white population, are the immigrant Indians, Chinese and the African-Asians (refugees of the \x91Africanisation Policies\x92 of East Africa during the 1960s-70s). It need not take an expert in labour economics to realise that enterprising individuals do not only create jobs for themselves, but their businesses create jobs for indigenous people, and also, wealth for the country as a whole, wealth so that perhaps all \x91spongers\x92 can live a comfortable life.

I do believe that there are \x91spongers\x92; both ingenious and immigrant. I do have qualms with the current immigration policies, but do believe that many of the arguments presented above are suitable only for \x91The Sun\x92. There is no empirical evidence to suggest that immigration leads to a fall in wages or a fall in employment, (I would suggest a read of Cuban immigration into Miami in Angrist and Krueger, 1999). However, I do believe that the current policies are too lenient, and that if we are not careful, we will give this country away to immigrants. The idea of testing does seem plausible, and I would argue that we should only allow immigrants into the UK if they have specific skill sets of which we have significant shortages; this is more or less the basis of the Australian immigration policy.

Gregory’s right that there’s a lot of really nasty demonisation of immigrants that has to be resisted. That said, as I’ve mentioned here before: current immigration policy is a supply side intervention in the labour market for the benefit of business.

There are lots of awful jobs which don’t pay much and have horrible working conditions. If there aren’t enough people willing to work in these jobs (which there currenly aren’t) the market will force employers to raise wages and improve conditions in competition for labour. That’s elementary economics. This is great, since it will improve the lot of the poorest and least fortunate people in the country. Immigration is being used as a way to remove this "problem" for the benefit of business, not the people the government should be looking out for.

Things turned for the worse in the U.S. some time ago; America, once the land of those who dared to dream for a better life for their children and welcomed immigration, became America post-Depression.

When times get hard, people turn on immigrants; they always have, they always will. When we have little, we seem to feel that immigrants take what could or should be rightfully ours.

So, let me say this emphatically: Times do get tough.

Therefore, I encourage you to rush out to clean toilets in backwater, motorway restaraunts and petrol stations. Tomorrow, you’ll be put on a bus and sent to a random location with no idea where you’re working to clean sinks and floors.

Maybe you’d prefer that job out in the countryside, spending every waking moment of your day picking vegetables and fruits to be sent to monolithic grocers you don’t make enough money to buy food in, and sleep in a motorhome, safe in the knowledge that you will lose your job in less than two months and be homeless, migrating in search of the next job.

Those are just a handful of the jobs that those awful, horrible immigrants are stealing from you; the jobs that must be done by someone, the jobs you don’t want to do. The jobs that don’t pay well, the jobs that don’t give you security; the job you stupidly and erroneously think you have isn’t that job.

I’m sure you’ll tell me how strongly you feel otherwise - how immigrants come here in their billions to feed off of the society like locusts on the field, a great Plague descending on us from Europe like the angel of death on Passover, poor British men, women, and children plastering their doorframes with the blood-red front pages of the Sun, huddling behind their doors in fear of tomorrow.

And I’m *positive* you won’t sound like a complete moron. Really. Honestly. Would I lie to you, and all that.

Go on, talk about it. Let out your worst fears; say them out loud, and you’ll see them evaporate like a mist in the light of day. The belief that immigrants and asylum seekers are the cause for our ills, rather than the benign panacea it has actually been in reality, needs to die. Because it’s not the facts that make you feel the way you do about it - it’s the fear. The fear is honest, the fear is real; palpable in some, quiescent in others, but nonetheless an honest expression of fear, and worthy of discussion. Lance the boil.