Tough UK government bill aims at curbing immigration

Illegal and even legal immigration in the UK is a hot subject during the present day hard times for the majority of UK citizens, with the government’s latest immigration bill hoping to pour water on the flames of criticism.

The latest crackdown on illegal immigrants features strongly in the bill, along with digs at overseas students’ health needs and health tourism in general. Human rights workers, lawyers, everyday landlords and health service workers were the first to criticise it, warning of unlawful discrimination amongst other complaints.

David Cameron’s Conservative-led government is aware that the hot potato of migration to the UK could lose it the 2015 election, and wants to reduce non-EU immigration by a massive 76,000 to less than 100,000. Preventing the use of public services by newly-arrived migrants in order to make the country less attractive as a destination is top of the list.

However, critics of the new legislation insist that legal immigrants will also be hit and racial discrimination will rise as a result. Private landlords are unhappy, as they will be expected to undertake the complicated task of checking whether a new tenant is an illegal immigrant, basically doing immigration’s job and being exposed to large fines if they refuse to comply.

Experts are concerned the measure will result in landlords refusing to let to non-British citizens, leaving themselves open to accusations of racial discrimination and the resulting lawsuits. Driving license applicants will also have their immigration status checked, and overseas students and others on temporary visas will have to pay at least £200 to use the NHS.

The number of reasons for deportation appeals will be slashed from 17 to just four, and banks will be forced to check the immigration status of applicants for new accounts. Other moves are likely to stem the so-called flow of health tourists, although medical professionals believe there is no evidence supporting the supposed increase.