A Bradford councillor and solicitor has written to Prime Minister David Cameron and other senior ministers calling on them to create an independent think-tank to thrash out a solution to the “current immigration fiasco”.
Asama Javed, a partner at Reiss Solicitors, has written an open letter to around 15 ministers, including the PM and Home Secretary Theresa May.
Coun Javed said: “With the economy taking us on a rollercoaster ride, concerns about the immovability within the employment market, influx of migrants from the neighbouring Eastern Europe and talks of incompatibility between different cultures, coupled with allegations of racially motivated sexual grooming, the country has never been faced with more challenging times.”
She said a recent Panorama programme, called Immigration Undercover: The Student Visa Scandal, had exacerbated those challenges and placed a shadow of doubt over the entire immigration process.
Coun Javed (Manningham, Lab) wants ministers to repeat the success of a meeting in Bradford a few years ago when high-profile politicians and immigration specialists gathered to discuss the subject.
“I’m asking them to come to Bradford and have a chat and debate like we did several years ago,” she said.
She thinks politicians should also visit other cities and work towards creating a group with representatives from across the country to focus on immigration, taking into account the needs of people across the UK.
Her letters also say current rules, regulations and dissimilarity in decision-making has offended and breached the British citizens’ rights.
While agreeing the current immigration system does warrant rigorous controls, Coun Javed has called for discrepancies in decision-making to be abolished.
Examples she has presented to ministers include that when an illegal person states they are in a mere relationship with a European national, they are permitted to start work immediately, yet if they were to marry a British citizen they would have to meet immigration rules.
The immigration specialist has also highlighted the need for uniformity in rules to reduce the illegal migration and curb the number of employers recruiting and abusing illegal migrants.
“We have to ask ourselves how many of these people making recommendations originate from grass root level, live, or have lived, in council estates,” she said.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article