EU enlargement - access to Ireland 'is on a contingency basis'.

international | eu | news report Thursday February 05, 2004 20:21 by Fergus newsforthedeaf at yahoo dot com

Britain announces EU-turn

The front page of todays Irish Times runs a story on yesterdays announcement by Britain to restrict immigration in an 'enlarged' EU.

Britain is now the fourth of five EU countries to back down on promises made during EU enlargement negotiations in Dec. 2002.

According to todays Irish Times frontpage headline, 'Ireland is now the only EU state not to restrict access'.

However in the article an Irish govt. spokesman commenting on Britains announcement admits that Ireland,
"retained the power on a contingency basis to impose necessary controls should there be a major disruption in the labour market."

Todays Irish "suspect headline" Times reports that Britain yesterday signaled plans to restrict access to welfare benefits to citizens of the 10 new EU members.

Britain is now the fourth of five EU countries to back down on promises made during EU enlargement negotiations in Dec. 2002.

Background to the Back-down.

In Dec. 2002 it was claimed that negotiations for EU enlargement had been completed.
Ireland, Britain, Denmark, Sweden and the Netherlands announced at the time that they would welcome workers [people ?] from the new member states from May 1st 2004.

During the past two months, however countries have drawn back from their promises.

Denmark's EU-turn,
last Dec. announced "we can all celebrate that Danish social security schemes are fenced".

Holland's EU-turn,
on January 23rd announced that a max of 22,000 workers [people ?] would be admitted during the first year of enlargement.

Sweden's EU-turn,
last Friday announced restrictions preventing "people from East Europe to work for peanuts and giving them access to our social benefits".

Britain's EU-turn

Prime Minister Tony Blair said he would consider whether Britain's benefit system was so generous that it would attract unmanageable numbers of immigrants after joining on May 1st.
"We will take whatever measures are necessary to make sure that the 'pull factor' which might draw people here is closed off," he told the House of Commons yesterday.
Mr. Blair's spokesman said yesterday London was not considering denying citizens the right to work, but was examining ways to tighten controls of the welfare system.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/guardianpolitics/story/0,3605,1141167,00.html

Commenting on the issue that Ireland now remains the only EU country offering equal work and welfare rights to citizens of the new EU members a government spokesman said.
"Our position is still the same. We are confident that the free movement of workers from May 1st will not cause disruption to the Irish labour market.
However,
we have of course retained the power on a contingency basis to impose necessary controls should there be a major disruption in the labour market."

[ie conditional enlargement]

He said the current position on the right to receive welfare benefits was that this would be the same for citizens of new member-states as for existing members.

[ie after implementing measures such as the recent cutbacks to rent allowance ?]

"If there were strong indications that the Irish welfare system would become overburdened, then it may be necessary to put in place restrictions."

[Restrictions ?]
[On more immigration ?]
[On the overall Irish welfare system ?]

Ireland's EU-turn ?

The Dept. of Enterprise and Employment believes the bulk of Ireland's labour needs will soon be fulfilled from within an enlarged EU.
[ie for business in Ireland to remain competitive, immigration is a solution to reduce wage costs]
The Irish government seems to have responsed to fears that immigrants will "work for peanuts".
This week saw the introduction of a new minimum wage of 7 euro per hour.
Much to the dissatisfaction of business representative group IBEC.

Co-incidentally ?
This week also saw the government introduce cutbacks to the Irish welfare system.
"New eligibility criteria", mean that access to rent allowance is now restricted.
"A situation where very many will....have access to the entire social security net.", seems to have been limited in an underhand fashion.

The chicken shit Irish government has attacked what it see's as an easy target.

The unemployed, lone parents AND immigrants get kicked in the face with the solution.