UK Immigration News

The UK's opposition Labour Party has accused the government of presiding over an immigration system in chaos. The shadow home secretary, Yvette Cooper, told the House of Commons that the government was complacent and said that the government's 'only answer to illegal immigration is to get a man in a van to drive round in circles with a poster asking if they'd mind going home'.

A poll of British adults has found that the question of immigration arouses strong feelings. The poll was commissioned by the former chairman of the UK's right-of-centre Conservative Party, Lord Ashcroft and carried out by his own polling organisation; Lord Ashcroft Polls.

20,000 people were questioned about their attitudes to immigration and immigrants. The poll found that better educated people tended to be more in favour of immigration but showed that some were implacably opposed.

The UK's ambassador to Nigeria, Dr Andrew Pocock, has told a Nigerian newspaper that the UK has yet to decide whether to introduce a system of security bonds which would be paid by some applicants for UK visas. Dr Pocock said that the scheme had not yet been adopted as a policy and said that 'it is simply something that is being discussed in the UK'. He added that, even if it is introduced, it will only affect a tiny proportion of Nigerians travelling to the UK.

The UK's Office for National Statistics has released figures which show that the latest net migration figure has risen by 23,000. In the year to December 2012, the UK net immigration figure stood at 176,000. In the year to September 2012, net immigration was 153,000. This will be an embarrassment for the government which has pledged to reduce the net immigration figure to below 100,000 by 2015.

A noted UK celebrity chef has said that his restaurants would close immediately if it were not for immigrants coming to the UK from Europe.

Jamie Oliver, perhaps the most famous chef in the world, has made numerous television programmes and sold millions of books. His wealth has been estimated at over £150m. In the UK, he has over 30 restaurants. Most are part of his Jamie's Italian chain. His other chain of restaurants the 'Fifteen' chain has three restaurants that provides training for disadvantaged young people.

Boris Johnson, the colourful mayor of London, has used his weekly column in UK newspaper The Daily Telegraph to call for Australians and New Zealanders to be given the same rights to live and work in the UK as are currently enjoyed by EU citizens.

Mr Johnson is currently in Australia. He said that, while there, an Australian teacher, Sally Roycroft, handed him a letter in which she said that she had been a successful teacher in Haringey, North East London, for some time.