Gordon Brown is going to strengthen the links between the Points Based System and training UK workers in a bid to fill the UK’s skills gap.
The UK still does not have enough skilled workers to meet demand for some categories under tier 2 which includes engineers and IT workers, often employed by UK umbrella companies. But the Prime Minister said that by advertising locally and training UK workers, the amount of migrants entering the UK for tier 2 employment had fallen by 36,000 over the past 2 years.
Mr. Brown also said that care workers would no longer be on the shortage list in 2012 and skilled chefs would be removed in 2014. He is confident that by then enough local labour will have been trained to fill these positions.
It is also hoped that the new Border Agency will prove to be more effective in stopping illegal migrants entering the country. The UK is already issuing new ID cards for foreign nationals and the issuance of biometric visas should also make it easier to identify illegal aliens. Local immigration teams will also be in force by next year and they will be targeting gangmasters and rogue employers.
Last week the REC took part in a debate on this subject with the PM and Alan Johnston, the Home Secretary and whilst they welcome the measures to stop the employment of illegal migrants, they are unsure whether this new clampdown will have a beneficial effect on the recruitment industry. They believe that the recovery could be put at risk if we tighten immigration too much.
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