Authorities report increase in Polish workers applying for benefits
While there are many benefits to being a central part of the EU, the open employment market is one which does not yet appear to have benefited the UK. Over the last few years we have seen a significant influx of Polish workers into the UK and while the authorities continue to claim they are filling employment positions which are not wanted by UK workers, there has been a significant increase in benefit claims. As part of the EU, immigrant workers are able to claim the full range of UK benefits after they have worked here for just 12 months.
Indeed there are loopholes in employment laws which have allowed Polish workers, and other immigrant workers, to return to their original homeland and continue to claim UK unemployment benefit. While the exact figures with regards to immigrant workers who are now claiming benefits are fairly difficult to come by, there is no doubt that thousands of overseas workers are now claiming benefit in the UK. So what can the UK authorities do to reduce exposure to immigrant benefit claims?
The simple answer to the question is, nothing, with EU laws allowing freedom of movement for each and every person from an EU member state. As the UK benefits system is one of the more lucrative in the world it seems highly unlikely that we will see a significant reduction in benefit claims from immigrant workers in the short to medium term.
Share this..
Related stories
Kingfisher forced to issue indicative trading report
The UK retail giant Kingfisher, which owns DIY chain B&Q, was today forced to release a highly unusual indicative trading update to the city. This came about after the head of the company's investor relations division accidentally e-mailed a spreadsheet to a number of city analysts which detailed the forthcoming figures. So what exactly happened?
In a fairly run-of-the-mill investor...
How Can The Public Influence The Cost Of Employing MPs?
Over the last couple of years there has been a growing debate about the cost of employing MPs in the UK and the massive expenses they are allowed to claim. As each and every sector of the UK public continue to struggle we are hearing more and more stories about massive expenses claims, MPs employing members of their own family and taking rental payment from the public purse to work from home.
Beware of scams as the recession bites
Today's announcement from the OFT regarding an increase in debt related services which may not be able to deliver on their promises has focused many minds upon the significant increase in scams around the UK. As we have seen in the past, times of financial trouble seem to attract the vultures of the UK business world looking to prey on the concerns and fears of many. It is worth remembering that i...
Read MoreIs Ireland about to ratify the Lisbon Treaty?
Only one year ago it was the Irish electorate that effectively crushed the growing push for EU collaboration between member states with a rejection of the Lisbon Treaty. Despite the fact that UK voters were not given a chance to air their views on the treaty, it appears as though we are set for a rerun in October after the Irish authorities agreed various get out clauses with the EU hierarchy. But...
Read MoreHow safe is tax payers money?
It has been revealed that the audit commission, which is responsible for overseeing public sector spending, stands to lose a possible £10 million which was recently deposited with two Icelandic banks. The payments were made in April and July of 2007 and while at the time they adhered to government guidelines it is a little embarrassing to see the commission overseeing public finances fall into t...
Read More