Poverty Migration: Berlin Backs Cameron's 'Benefit Tourism' Offensive

[unhappycamper]

http://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/germany-joins-uk-in-calling-for-measures-against-benefit-tourism-a-936350.html



Germany has now stepped into the UK-triggered fray over introducing new restrictions on migration within the EU. The European Commission is enraged, and even conservative EU parliamentarians warn of pandering to populists.

Poverty Migration: Berlin Backs Cameron's 'Benefit Tourism' Offensive
By Carsten Volkery and Severin Weiland
November 29, 2013 – 01:29 PM

"Free movement within Europe needs to be less free," British Prime Minister David Cameron wrote on Friday in a guest editorial for the Financial Times. Then he outlined a detailed list of ways the United Kingdom plans to limit access for European Union citizens to his country's social benefits.

The attack on some of the EU's most popular basic rights has sparked outrage across Europe, though Cameron has defended his comments by saying that other countries -- such as Germany, Austria and the Netherlands -- share his position.

Indeed, in April the four countries sent a letter to the European Commission complaining of the burden immigrants have placed on their social systems and calling for solutions. And in the new coalition contract between Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democratic Union (CDU), its Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union (CSU) and the Social Democratic Party (SPD), the CSU pushed through several passages critical of migration under the heading "Poverty Migration within the EU." National and European laws must be changed so that "incentives for migrants in social security systems will be reduced," it says. To achieve that, "the facilitation of temporary re-entry barriers" is necessary, among other things. In addition, exemptions for jobseekers should be "clarified."

The escalation in rhetoric is related to an impending deadline: Beginning on Jan. 1, 2014, there will be full freedom of movement for workers from Romania and Bulgaria. Both countries have been full European Union members since 2007, but their citizens have thus far faced restricted access to labor markets in nine other EU states. Experts believe that the feared stampede of new migrants will not materialize because the majority of people who wanted to move abroad did so a long time ago. But politicians in Western Europe are still nervous. Cameron, in particular, is worried that the right-wing populist UK Independence Party (UKIP) will make massive gains in the European Parliament elections scheduled for next spring.

[dipsydoodle]

1. Good.

.

[dixiegrrrrl]

4. HOw much of anti-immigrant feelings are based on racisim in UK?

I am just beginning to look at the immigration "problem" in the UK....any insight would be helpful.

[dipsydoodle]

5. That a complicated question

which is complicated not least of all by what you regard as "race" - East Europeans for example are not a race.

Overall I'd say issues here are not race related - may have been 40 or so years ago but not now.

Sniping at immigration levels generally revolves around immigrants occupying jobs, immigrants having access to benefits including corporation housing and of course unpaid access to the NHS.

The "problem" has not been helped by New Labour's lies on the levels of immigration - a predicted 13000 a year became a million or so overall. http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2013/nov/13/jack-straw-labour-mistake-poles Because that happened the assumption is that it could persist unabated beyond sustainable levels.

I've said in the past - if everyone wants to come here for whatever reason then fine : we'll all fuck off to another island somewhere else that's warmer and leave them to it and by "we" I don't mean the white population : I mean everyone already here prior to a given date at least 10 years ago.

[dixiegrrrrl]

6. Thanks for your input.

I have been aware of the issue via BBC tv shows, actually, then followed up by finding news sources.
Undoubtly it is a major issue, from what I can tell.
I can see where "free" health care can be a major drawing point in some countries.
We are all familiar with political and financial refugees, but soon, if not by now, climate refugees will be an issue, I would think.

[dipsydoodle]

7. "free" ?

Contrary to popular belief outside of the UK its not free - its socialised. Its more or less budgeted in such a way that those employed and their employers pay a tax, aside from income tax , based on earnings , in simple terms c. 26% of gross , to cover the both the employed and unemployed and those not eligible to pay - children and the retired etc. As such, historically, there had never been much in the way need for checks to see who should receive healthcare because it was taken for granted that everyone was covered anyway. That was discovered to be a sad mistake when health tourism became apparent - those coming on holiday here for health treatment some of which was big time expenditure for the NHS.

[pampango]

2. Imagine that. One conservative backing another conservative targeting "welfare moms". n/t

[Laelth]

3. This is a serious issue that the EU must address.

In the United States, we settled this issue in a case called Saenz v. Roe, and the SCOTUS decided in favor of the right to travel (as opposed to the State's right to deny benefits to immigrants). Some of the wealthier nations in Europe want to protect their right to discriminate against recent immigrants and want to dramatically reduce immigration. Our Federal system prohibits this kind of discrimination.

The EU faces a serious question, here, one that the United States settled in 1999 in favor of free travel and immigration between the states. Whether the EU wants to become more like the U.S., or more like a loose confederation, is the question. It will be very interesting to see how this plays out.

-Laelth