Excuses, excuses

The government is desperately casting about in order to shift the blame.  CityAM reports:

BUSINESS figures hit back yesterday after the government appeared to blame British employers for a jump in net migration to the UK.

The number of people coming to the UK, minus those leaving, rose to 330,000 in the year to March – an all-time record high. British growth gets a boost from higher migration, according to the government’s fiscal watchdog – but Tory immigration minister James Brokenshire described the figure as “deeply disappointing”.

Brokenshire said that the “reliance that business continues to place on migrant labour” was responsible for the increase, as well as blaming rules over foreign students and the EU’s principle of freedom of movement.

Despite - or perhaps because of - their own stupidity in setting a target of reducing annual immigration to "tens of thousands", the government continues to see immigration as something to be ashamed of.  It never occurs to them to celebrate the fact that people want to live and work in the UK.

Incidentally, the net annual total of over 300,000 rather makes the 5000 odd desperadoes in Calais look like rather a minor problem ...