UK points system immigration policy introduces controversy
□ Reporter Wang Minyan
The British government announced the new point-based immigration plan after "Brexit" on July 13, and will take effect on January 1, 2021, after the UK has ended the transition period from Brexit. The new immigration program scores applicants in terms of labor skills, qualifications, salary levels, language skills, job opportunities, etc. Only those who have obtained enough points can be allowed to work in the UK. However, this new plan has still received a lot of criticism in the UK.
Completed in one year
After taking office, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been committed to reforming immigration policies, reducing the total number of immigrants, attracting high-tech talents, and promoting British economic development.
As early as February 19, the British government issued a policy statement on the new point immigration system, planning to complete the point immigration system reform in one year.
On July 13, the British Home Secretary, Priety Patel, announced that the United Kingdom would implement a new immigration policy with a point system and announced that the new immigration policy would be implemented on January 1, 2021.
Patel said in his statement that the new immigration policy is aimed at opening up to business investment and attracting "the best and brightest global talents", aiming to treat people from all over the world equally, control border security and prosper the UK economy.
The statement pointed out that the new immigration policy will give employers enough time to prepare and implement it in stages.
Johnson said that the new immigration point system is not a comprehensive ban on immigrants entering the UK. "We are not closing the door, not prohibiting immigrants from entering our country, but designing the system to be more humane and organized."
High-skilled talents become the focus
According to the new immigration program, highly skilled talents such as scientists, engineers and scholars will be the key targets for the UK to attract immigrants. There is no limit to the number of people who can apply to work in the UK, as long as they meet the conditions, they can apply for work immigration.
The new immigration system has nine scoring standards, which include skills, language ability, salary level, etc. into the points system. According to the plan, applicants for long-term residence in the UK must reach 70 points.
In the new immigration policy, occupations such as carpentry, construction personnel, child care, etc. will be included in the list of job types that can obtain work visas, but low-skilled occupations such as restaurant waiters and farmers are excluded, and immigrant applicants who engage in this occupation type will lose their jobs Visa eligibility.
The British government also announced the launch of the "Global Talent Program", "Graduate Talent Path" and "Medical Staff Visa Program".
The Global Talent Program welcomes scientists and researchers from all over the world to the UK, and no job invitation is required.
The “Graduate Talent Path” will be implemented from the summer of 2021. International students can stay in the UK for two years for undergraduate and master degrees, and three years for doctoral degrees.
In addition, the United Kingdom will provide overseas medical staff with a faster and more convenient medical and nursing visa application system, but eligible applicants do not include nursing staff in nursing homes.
Critics claim to bring disaster
However, this new immigration policy was met with opposition from some people. According to British media reports, the immigration point system announced by the British government clearly excludes low-skilled labor, and this is to cater to Johnson's commitment to reduce low-skilled immigrants during the campaign. Many people criticized this as making the UK "bad environment".
The analysis pointed out that according to a recent opinion poll, the public's attitude towards immigrants has actually softened. A study shows that only 14% of British people think immigration is a big problem for the UK. More people (55%) think that the medical system is currently the most important issue, 19% think it is a criminal issue, and 18% think it is an environmental issue.
Others question whether this new immigration policy will really reduce the number of immigrants, especially since the UK is currently recruiting more doctoral students and more Asian immigrants. New Zealand and Canada also use immigration points, but immigration is still an important issue in these two countries. The analysis believes that immigration is more about culture than economy, and the new immigration point system obviously cannot achieve the desired results.
Some analysts believe that the new immigration program is a disaster for social welfare, and it will have a huge negative impact on agriculture. The new immigration system excludes nursing home nursing staff from the expedited visa application system, which will cause a shortage of front-line staff in nursing homes in the UK.