7 .5 The analysis and assessment in this paper sug g ests a number o f areas where po licy co uld be develo ped – suppo rted by further research and analysis – to help impro ve perfo rmance o f the mig ratio n system.
Mig ratio n and the labo ur marke t
7 .6 Different entry ro utes a ll impa c t o n the la b o ur ma rket, b ut in different wa ys, a nd with no rea l c o - o rdinatio n acro ss the different ro utes o r with bro ader o bjectives. There are o ng o ing pro blems with skill sho rtag es at all skill levels which mig ratio n is meeting in part, and mig ratio n also benefits inno vatio n and entrepreneurialism, creating new jo bs.
7 .7 A number o f refo rms have been intro duced (o r are being pilo ted) to make it easier fo r inno vato rs, entrepreneurs and hig hly talented peo ple to enter the UK. Ho wever, the bro ader climate fo r inno vatio n and new businesses in the UK will also be an impo rtant facto r in attracting entrepreneurs, as will the wider so cial and cultural enviro nment. The UK has had so me successes in attracting entrepreneurs fro m elsewhere in the EEA, but there may be merit in co nsidering why they cho se the UK, why mo re do no t cho o se the UK and where the barriers are (g iven the absence o f mig ratio n po licy o bstacles).
7 .8 O n skill sho rta g es, there is c lea rly unsa tisfied dema nd a t a ll skill levels in the la b o ur ma rket. The G o vernment is implementing measures to refo rm the labo ur market, including pro viding mo re training o ppo rtunities a nd enha nc ing skills in o rder to intro duc e g rea ter flexib ility, whilst a t the sa me time ensuring minimum sta nda rds a re met. Mig ra tio n po lic y c a n b e useful a s a n a dditio na l instrument, altho ug h it is no t a substitute fo r a well-functio ning labo ur market and effective po licies o n skills and training . Skill sho rtag es and unfilled vacancies manifest themselves at all skill levels:
● Attra c ting hig h skille d mig ra nts is a g ro wing pro b le m. The re is inc re a sing c o mpe titio n between destinatio n co untries fo r “ the brig htest and the best” and a limited supply. W hile entry co ntro ls have a part to play, the wider o ppo rtunities and characteristics o f the UK are also likely to be sig nificant.
● Recent refo rms to the wo rk permit system have included a do wnward revisio n o f the hig h skill thresho ld making entry easier fo r so me mig rants who wo uld no t have been elig ible fo r entry under the previo us rules. Experienc e o f this develo pment will help to info rm a na lysis o f whether this chang e will meet demand fo r skills at this level.
● Allo wing entry o f lo w-skilled wo rkers o n a small scale has been relatively successful in filling vacancies in so me secto rs (no tably in ag riculture, thro ug h the seaso nal ag ricultural wo rkers scheme). There may be sco pe to extend this treatment to o ther secto rs, either where the unmet labo ur demand is seaso nal o r tempo rary, o r mo re g enerally.
7 .9 In each case, many aspects o f mig ratio n po licy and subsequent po licies o n integ ratio n are po ssible instruments. Fo r example, attracting mo re EEA natio nals, helping tho se g ranted asylum o r entering as dependents o r thro ug h family unificatio n to better use their abilities in the labo ur market, o r reviewing existing wo rk related categ o ries.
Ille g al mig ratio n
7.10 Illeg al mig ratio n has o ccurred fo r a number o f reaso ns. In part because there is unmet demand in the labo ur market (particularly, but no t o nly) at the lo wer end, and in part because o f o ther exo g eno us pressures (including civil war, and eco no mic, so cial and po litical instability). W hile impro ving co ntro l is a necessary co nditio n fo r addressing this pro blem, it is unlikely to be sufficient. W e need to examine the interactio n o f leg al and illeg al mig ratio n and its impact o n different areas o f the labo ur market.
Entry co ntro l
7.11 The current entry co ntro l system is no t sufficiently jo ined up with o ther areas o f G o vernment po licy, and po st-entry po licies do no t address so cial and eco no mic o bjectives. In additio n, there are a number o f a re a s w he re p o lic y c o uld e nha nc e mig ra nts’ e c o no mic a nd so c ia l c o ntrib utio n, in line w ith the G o vernment’s o verall o bjectives, but is failing to do so :
● Aim 6 relates primarily to entry co ntro l, rather than to po st-entry po licies (except in the case o f asylum seekers) yet the latter are at least as impo rtant in determining mig rants’ co ntributio n – po sitive o r neg ative – to so ciety. Mig rant settlement is a two -way pro cess, depending bo th o n the willing ness and ability o f the mig rant to adapt and integ rate, and o n the extent to which the ho st so ciety pro vides access to eco no mic, so cial and po litical life. Sig nificantly, neither the debate o n so cial exclusio n, no r the indexes used to measure it, have hitherto embraced mig rants as a categ o ry to be co nsidered.8 0
● The Ho me O ffice has a separate co mmitment to pro mo te race e quality, particularly in the pro visio n o f public services such as educatio n, health, law and o rder, ho using and lo cal g o vernment. This is a specific PSA o bjective under Ho me O ffice Aim 5 (Helping to build, under a mo dernised co nstitutio n, a fair and pro spero us so ciety, in which everyo ne has a stake, and in which the rig hts and respo nsibilities o f individuals, families and co mmunities are pro perly balanced). The fo cus o f this o bjective is o n the mino rity ethnic po pulatio n (which enco mpasses aro und half o f the mig rant po pulatio n) but, like the so cial exclusio n debate, has no t so far explicitly reco g nised mig rants as a separate g ro up, facing specific pro blems. ● W hile the Ho me O ffice has respo nsibility fo r immig ratio n co ntro l po licy, mig ratio n has a
wide rang e o f impacts with relevance acro ss G o vernment, no t o nly to the Ho me O ffice. Mo st no tably, DfEE, via the O LS, is respo nsible fo r the primary channel o f eco no mic mig ratio n, the wo rk permit system. But DfEE has no eco no mic targ ets o r o bjectives fo r O LS. DfEE also has respo nsibility fo r increasing the number o f o verseas students; but it is Ho me O ffice Rules that reg ulate their entry.
● It is o ften implied that there is a trade-o ff between eco no mic g ro wth and so cial stability, with mo re o f o ne implying less o f ano ther. In fact, the analysis repo rted in Chapter 6 sug g ests that the two o ften g o hand in hand: an eco no mically beneficial mig ratio n po licy will also have po sitive so cial impact, and vice versa.
7.12 This sug g ests that Aim 6 needs to be develo ped o ver time, and made mo re o peratio nal, to reflect better the o verall o bjectives o f the G o vernment, and the ro le o f o ther Departments.
7.13 O ne po ssibility fo r future co nsideratio n mig ht be a cro ss-cutting PSA reflecting the bro ader o bjectives o f the rang e o f departments with an interest in mig ratio n, in particular, as well as the Ho me O ffice, the DfEE, the DTI, DSS, the FCO and DfID. Such a PSA wo uld reflect the G o vernment’s o verall o bjectives a nd the c o ntrib utio n tha t mig ra tio n p o lic y mig ht ma ke . This a p p ro a c h ha s w o rke d w e ll in o the r po licy areas.