‘Decades of immigration’ might be the answer to rebuilding the UK economy, says the government’s budget watchdog.
To save the UK from suffering the fate of other indebted European countries, the government needs to make savings of around £50 billion, by hiking up taxes and further cutting public spending.
But the austerity measures over the coming decades could be eased by opening the doors to more migrants, according to the Office for Budget Responsibility’s annual report.
These findings may put the Coalition into a bit of a dilemma when trying to justify the tightening of immigration regulations. They are promising to cut back immigration figures by over half, which the OBR says could cause a drop to 140,000.
But the fiscal watchdog has advised that the current 260,000 figure of immigrants is actually helping the UK recover from an economic slump rather than putting a strain on it.
Allowing more migrants to work in the UK would boost annual growth from a rate of 2.4% to 2.7%, their sustainability report predicts.
International students are currently included in immigration figures. Many in parliament would like to see them excluded as not many of them stay behind in the UK for long, allowing room for other migrants to come.
Of course the report doesn’t go without opposition as immigration remains an ever-controversial issue. Many believe that it is better for Britain to stop depending on migration, and instead to ensure the home-grown population are educated and skilled enough.
Though this is a nice idea in concept, if the OBR’s predictions are correct, the UK could stay in the darkness of debt’s shadow for a great deal longer.
