Migration crisis

[cromwell]

I know we've probably done this one to death, but looking at the news tonight really got me down a bit. There seems to be an endless stream of "migrants" aka illegal immigrants, coming across the Med with little or no attempts made to stop them. Very much the reverse in fact.

How is this going to do Europe any good whatsoever? These people aren't going to solve any skills shortage. We are just importing poverty en masse, foreign culture en masse. This is going to cause us nothing but problems and no one in authority seems to want to do anything about it.

[Workingman]

I hear that Italy is to close its ports to migrant boats - good on them.

It would be much better if the boats were intercepted and towed back to N. Africa, no questions asked.

[AliasAggers]

No doubt it would have been better for us all if the immigrant's were prevented from
crossing into Europe, but that would be heart-breaking for the genuine people who
are only trying to escape from a hell on earth situation in their homeland.

Really, the only sensible action on the part of Europeans would be to take military
action to assist the potential immigrants in restoring normality in their homeland.

But I can't see that happening.

[Workingman]

According to a survey by the Open University employers are having difficulty getting recruits due to a 'skills shortage'.

It is about time these companies were called out on this, just claiming a skills shortage doesn't work any more. It is about time we had some hard facts to explain the claim; which skills are missing, in which industries and in what parts of the country. These companies have been importing people for decades, 7 million of them since the year 2000. That is plenty of time for any skills shortages to have been trained out of the system by now using our own young people.

[Suff]

That is plenty of time for any skills shortages to have been trained out of the system by now using our own young people.

You missed a bit.

by now using our own (Expensive), young people.

[Workingman]

[You missed a bit.

by now using our own (Expensive), young people.

That should not be the case down at the bottom end of the jobs market due to the National Minimum Wage unless employers are illegally underpaying migrants, and they would never do that would they? And as few or no skills are required to do these jobs the 'skill shortage' claim is nonsense.

Where they might have a point is with middle ranking jobs such as nurses, engineering, electronics and computer technicians, as examples. They do need formal training, but just as importantly, on-the-job training and experience as well, and therein lies the Catch 22. Modern employers apparently do not want to train up their own staff and that leaves the youngsters with no chance of gaining experience.

Had government and business been on top of this I wonder how many of those extra 7 million people who are now here would have actually been 'needed'?

[cromwell]

It is down to globalism, pure and simple.

How much does it cost to train a doctor or a nurse in the UK?

How much does it cost to go and poach a newly qualified doctor or nurse from India or the Philippines?

QED.

PLUS, this approach enable "Progressives" to state that "The NHS could not survive without foreign doctors and nurses".

Only because you won't train your own people.

[Workingman]

How much does it cost to train a doctor or a nurse in the UK?

How much does it cost to go and poach a newly qualified doctor or nurse from India or the Philippines?.

Point taken, but how long is it before the one doctor or nurse brings over their spouse and children, possibly mum and dad and a sibling or few. It is a false economy in the long run.

I have long said that many of these workers should be part of an expatriate workforce fully funded by those employing them -- medicare, housing, schooling etc. That would soon show us the true picture with regards to skills shortages and possibly make employers think that training up someone from the UK might not be a bad idea.

[TheOstrich]

Only because you won't train your own people.

Yes and we now have the absolutely crazy situation where UK citizens who want to train as dentists and doctors are actually going to Bulgaria and other East European countries, to receive their training and qualify there, because they can't get on any training courses in the UK. (BBC News feature earlier this week).

You couldn't make it up.

And another thing - Italy is bleating that it can't cope with an influx of just 83,000 immigrants in the first 6 months of this year and wants crisis help. The UK net migration figure for 2016 was 248,000 .......

[cromwell]

Public figure states the obvious. Bill Gates says Europe will be "overwhelmed" if we don't do something.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... urope.html

I don't think his views will be leading the six o'clock news tonight though.