SOCIOLOGY

Role of Immigration and Poverty

Role of Immigration and Poverty

Introduction

The subject of immigration has become increasingly important over the past decade. Immigration has always raised questions about positive and negative effects on the native population. Nowadays inhabitants are more and more afraid about losing control over their own country and losing typical historical values. As (Weiner, 1996) wrote: “... the consequences of opening the borders of a country in extreme situations can be erosion of the institutions and values that liberal societies have created for themselves and which make them attractive to outsiders”. This essay will therefore discuss key issues of immigration into the United Kingdom such as economic issues, including employment, society and social issues such as crime, integration and racism.

It has been argued that immigrants play an important role to develop the economy by taking certain low paid jobs which the native population decline to take. Examples could include jobs in the construction industry, catering and domestic services. Moreover immigrants compensate skill shortages in the United Kingdom. They take jobs in the health service such as nurses and doctors. Not surprisingly 30% of doctors and more than 10% of nurses working in national health services and private companies are non-UK born.

Other jobs being filled with overseas staff include teaching and jobs in the IT industry. Due to a shortage of trained IT staff, a further 50,000 people need to be recruited by the end of 2009 to make up the gap of unskilled workforce (Glover, 2001). The British government therefore runs a number of different programmes like the work permit system and the highly skilled migrant programme to animate agencies and companies to recruit highly skilled workers from outside the European Economic Area.

Discussion

It is suggested by Angenendt(1999) that one of the key issues of immigration after unemployment, that the United Kingdom faced today, is crime. Tackling Fraud including both 'people trafficking', where someone is brought to the United Kingdom, and 'people smuggling' where someone is transport to international borders to a non-official entry point for different reasons.

Impact of Immigration on UK

This organized immigration crime is a growth industry and cost the United Kingdom millions of pounds each year (Secure Borders, Safe Haven: Integration with Diversity in Modern Britain, 2002). Smugglers are often paid huge amounts of money to bring refugees, who are trying to escape prosecution, hunger or poverty, into the United Kingdom. However, the British government has taken many steps to prevent the growth and to fight trafficking, including the strengthening of the law and the use of new technologies to identify illegal entrance into the United Kingdom.

Immigration in UK

Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/22/UK_net_migration.png

Asylum Seeking Families

Asylum seeking families come to the UK with high hopes for their future and are often seeking protection from a perilous past. They are exposed to destitution, poor health, depression, physical assault, sexual harassment, loneliness and stress and family breakdown. The children of asylum seekers are vulnerable and in need of considerable support (Fitzpatrick, ...