Wednesday, 5 May 2010

A selection of recent media reports

Labour in fresh immigration row
Labour faced fresh claims of misleading the public on immigration last night as it emerged almost four times as many EU workers are in the UK than Britons on the...
Telegraph.co.uk (05-May-2010)

No prosecutions for trafficking
As many as 10 organised crime gangs are involved in human trafficking in Scotland, a senior police officer warned yesterday Deputy Chief Constable Gordon Meldrum of the Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland (acpos) unveiled the extent of the network and agreed it was startling there had been no.
Herald Scotland (05-May-2010)

GENERAL ELECTION: BROWN WORST BRIT PM EVER...AND THAT'S FROM A LABOUR CANDIDATE
GORDON Brown was yesterday branded the worst Prime Minister we ve ever had by one of his own candidates. Labour s Manish Sood kicked his boss in the ballots by blasting him as a total disaster .
Daily Star (05-May-2010)

Lib migrant test anger
THE Lib Dems were blasted last night after it emerged they had chosen Scotland as a "guinea pig" for their controversial new immigration...
Online Sun (05-May-2010)

General Election 2010: Scotland has been 'betrayed' by Labour rule, says Clegg
NICK Clegg last night claimed that generations of Labour rule had "betrayed" the people of Scotland, as he addressed a rally in the Glasgow North...
The Scotsman (05-May-2010)

No matter how let down you feel, the BNP will not make life better for anyone
There is one undeniable fact that will forever prevent the BNP taking real power in this country the British people are not Nazis. The working class in this country may have been ignored, patronised and betrayed by the political...
Mirror.co.uk (05-May-2010)

75% of applications for asylum here rejected
THE GOVERNMENT rejected three-quarters of the 4,040 asylum applications it considered last year, which is slightly higher than the average rejection rate in the...
Irish Times (05-May-2010)

STEPHEN FRY RULES OUT BACKING GORDON BROWN
CAN things get any worse for Prime Minister Gordon...
Daily Express (05-May-2010)

City's Poles say 'no' to more migrants
A POLISH community leader has branded comments made by Lib-Dem leader Nick Clegg that Inverness needs more overseas workers as "irresponsible". 
The Inverness Courier (04-May-2010)

The election battle for Barking
For decades, Barking and Dagenham were considered impregnable bastions for Labour, but no...
BBC News Shropshire (04-May-2010)

Italian police fine Muslim woman for wearing veil
Tunisian woman stopped on the way to mosque for Friday prayers in Northern League stronghold of...
Guardian.co.uk (04-May-2010)

Parties defend immigration policies
The three main political parties have an "open door" policy on immigration, according to Nigel Farage. The Former Ukip leader made the accusation as he took part in a BBC Daily Politics debate on the issue alongside his Labour, Conservative and Liberal Democrat...
ePolitix.com (04-May-2010)

Disowned candidate Manish Sood unrepentant over PM blast
A "maverick" Labour candidate who branded Gordon Brown the "worst Prime Minister" was unrepentant today despite being disowned by his party. North West Norfolk candidate Manish Sood hit out at Mr Brown less than 48 hours before the polls...
The Independent (04-May-2010)

Keswick businessman facing sixteen immigration charges
A Cumbrian businessman has appeared in court charged with 16 immigration offences. Mohammed Hifzuil Rahman, 42, of St Johns Street, Keswick, entered no plea at West Allerdale Magistrates Court in...
News & Star (04-May-2010)

Farage, Green, Woolas and Brake on immigration
Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play. Immigration spokesmen clashed on UKIP's reputation as 'fruitcakes and closet racists' and Gordon Brown's encounter with Gillian...
BBC News Cambridgeshire (04-May-2010)

Postal vote fraud: 50 criminal inquiries nationwide amid fears bogus voters could swing election
Voter fraud could determine the outcome of the general election as evidence emerges of massive postal vote rigging. 
Daily Mail (04-May-2010)

Brown tax relief comments spark industry confusion
Gordon Brown has sparked confusion over Labour policy on high earners pensions after he reiterated plans to remove tax relief for those earning more than £100,000.
Professional Pensions (04-May-2010)

George Osborne: We can take safe Labour seats in London and win outright
George Osborne today reveals the Tories are targeting safe Labour seats around London and claims an outright election victory is within our grasp . In an interview with the Standard, he departed from the party's official line of caution by naming a string of London seats where Conservatives think huge...
Evening Standard (04-May-2010)

Immigrant in drugs factory police bust
An illegal immigrant who set up home in Sheffield is facing a lengthy prison sentence after being caught running a cannabis farm. We Huang, aged 31, of Herries Road, Sheffield, was busted running the cannabis farm in Irvine, Ayrshire, Scotland, in April 2008 and was found guilty after a trial.
Sheffield Telegraph (04-May-2010)

Gordon Brown 'is Britain's worst Prime Minister ever', says LABOUR election candidate 
A Labour election candidate has launched an extraordinary attack on Gordon Brown, calling him the 'worst prime minister' Britain has ever had. 
Daily Mail (04-May-2010)

Press Releases


Now it’s the BBC that blunder over immigration statistics

May 1, 2010

On the 10 o’clock TV news on 30 April, the BBC "Reality Check" claimed that, in 2008, there was a net outflow of non EU workers of 8,000 so the real pressure on British jobs was from a net inflow of 46,000 EU workers which none of the parties had any plans to control. To do so Britain would have to leave the EU – a policy advocated only by UKIP and the BNP.

The real situation is that about 100,000 non EU workers arrived in that year (including an estimate for dependants). The available statistics do not reliably indicate how many left. The proportion of those arriving was almost double the BBC's figure. A full explanation can be seen at Briefing Paper 10.23.

Commenting, Sir Andrew Green, Chairman Migrationwatch UK, said :

“The BBC of all people should get their facts right on a subject as sensitive as immigration, especially when they describe their report as a “reality check”. It would have helped if they had paid more attention to immigration policy in the past.”

See Notes to Editors for links to relevant sources