Work Permits: Big Business Exposed as “Crying Wolf”
New figures released by the Home Office have revealed that less than half of all available immigration work permits were taken up during the first three months following the “permit” cap—which means that dire warnings from Big Business on the topic were nonsense scare tactics.
The Home Office figures show that in the first three months in which the cap on economic migration has been operating, there were 7,200 permits made available. So far, only about 2,500 have actually been used.
Yet many Big Business leaders warned publicly that the imposition of a cap—which is itself a half-hearted measure—would “damage” the UK economy.
For example, the Professional and Business Services Group which claims to represents Britain’s “professional services sector” claimed in October 2010 that foreign employees are vital if companies are “maintain [a] global competitive edge.”
“We need a sophisticated approach for business,” Sir Michael Snyder, chairman of the Professional and Business Services Group and senior partner at chartered accountants Kingston Smith was quoted as saying at the time. “The cap doesn’t take into account the tangible benefits that they [the skilled employees] bring to the UK, such as linguistic skills, that cannot be replicated here.”
In November 2010, the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) warned that the “future of British business is at risk from the government’s plans to restrict immigration to the UK.”
Director general of the BCC, David Frost, was quoted as saying that “New restrictions on immigration must not undermine the ability of UK businesses to recruit the best and the brightest, which allows UK plc to compete internationally.
“The government needs to think again – and create a balanced migration policy that limits the number of low-skilled migrants, while allowing us to entice top global talent to the UK.”
Even the ConDem regime’s own dreadful wet liberal and Business Secretary Vince Cable repeated this mumbo-jumbo, telling the Financial Times in September 2010 that the immigration cap would hurt the “fragile economic recovery.”
Mr Cable told the FT that a “lot of damage was being done to British industry and companies were relocating jobs overseas in response to punitive caps that left them unable to hire key staff.”
However, the Home Office figures show that all of these statements were alarmist nonsense and made out of a political bias rather than any basis in reality.
According to the Home Office, applications for a “restricted certificate of sponsorship” in terms of the permanent limit on migration through Tier 2 (General) figures were as follows:
* The first monthly allocation took place on 11 April 2011. All valid applications received by 6 April 2011 were successful if they scored at least 32 points.
* Certificates of sponsorship set aside from annual limit for allocation in April: 4,200.
*Certificates of sponsorship granted in April allocation: 1,019.
* Balance of certificates of sponsorship carried over to May: 3,181.
* The second monthly allocation took place on 11 May 2011. All valid applications received by 6 May 2011 were successful if they scored at least 32 points.
* Balance of certificates of sponsorship carried over from April: 3,181.
* Certificates of sponsorship set aside from annual limit for allocation in May: 1,500.
* Certificates of sponsorship returned or reclaimed between 7 April and 5 May 2011: 3.
* Certificates of sponsorship granted by exceptional consideration outside the monthly allocation, between 7 April and 5 May 2011: 18
* Certificates of sponsorship available for allocation in May: 4,666
* Certificates of sponsorship granted in May allocation: 781
* Balance of certificates of sponsorship carried over to June: 3,885
* The third monthly allocation took place on 13 June 2011. All valid applications received by 5 June 2011 were successful if they scored at least 32 points.
* Balance of certificates of sponsorship carried over from April: 3,885.
* Certificates of sponsorship set aside from annual limit for allocation in May: 1,500.
* Certificates of sponsorship returned during previous month: 26.
* Certificates of sponsorship granted by exceptional consideration outside the monthly allocation during previous month: 14.
* Certificates of sponsorship available for allocation in June: 5,397.
* Certificates of sponsorship granted in June allocation: 845
* Balance of certificates of sponsorship carried over to July: 4,552.
* Certificates of sponsorship available for allocation in July: 6,052.
*A further 1,500 Certificates of sponsorship were made available on 11 July 2011.
