MPs are to debate government plans to toughen up the immigration system by making landlords question tenants about their status and cutting bank account access for those in the UK illegally. Ministers also want to make it easier to deport foreign criminals and cut the number of grounds for appeal. Home Secretary Theresa May has said the changes will put the system on the side of those who abide by the law. But Labour has tabled several amendments to the Immigration Bill. The governments plans, announced earlier this month, include: Making temporary residents, such as students, pay towards care provided by the NHS Powers to check driving licence applicants immigration status Cutting the number of deportation decisions that can be appealed against from 17 to four Clamping down on people who try to gain an immigration advantage by entering into a sham marriage or civil partnership Requiring banks to check against a database of known immigration offenders before opening bank accounts The bill will undergo its second reading debate - during which MPs discuss the main principles - on Tuesday. The government says it will help the aim of reducing net migration from non-EU countries - the difference between the number of people emigrating and arriving in the UK - to fewer than 100,000 a year. But Labour said the bill offered nothing to deal with exploitation of illegal workers or problems at border controls. Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper will propose several amendments, including: Making it illegal for employers deliberately to run shifts only for foreign workers or segregate shifts by nationality Banning unsuitable accommodation being used as tied housing to offset the minimum wage Making it illegal for recruitment agencies to target and recruit only foreign workers Setting a maximum fine of £30,000 for employing illegal immigrants There are no official estimates of the number of illegal immigrants in the UK. A 2009 study by the London School of Economics produced an estimate of 618,000, but the Migration Watch pressure group said this under-estimated the number of people who had overstayed their visas and the true figure was closer to 1.1 million.
Posted on: Tue, 22 Oct 2013 10:43:11 +0000
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