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Saturday, Dec 15, 2007
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British ‘assurance’ on migrants issue

Hasan Suroor

Ministers said to be sympathetic to Indian concerns; want issue solved

LONDON: Is relief finally on the way for thousands of highly-skilled Indian immigrants, affected by the recent changes to Britain’s immigration rules?

While officially, the British government continues to justify the changes, brought in ostensibly to check “abuse” of the Highly-Skilled Migrant Programme (HSMP), its Ministers are reported to have privately assured New Delhi that they are sympathetic to India’s concerns.

Commerce Minister Kamal Nath on Thursday said that he was “assured” by British Ministers that they would like to see the dispute resolved. He conveyed India’s “concern” when he met John Hutton, Secretary of State for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, and was told that the British government would like to see the matter “ironed out.” Observers recalled other Indian Ministers citing similar “assurances” from their British counterparts in the past. Will it be different this time?

The issue revolves around the status of some 49,000 people, including 15,000 Indians, from outside the European Union, who came to Britain under a programme introduced five years ago to open up immigration for highly-skilled people such as doctors, accountants and IT personnel. Lured by the promise of residency rights, many abandoned careers and sold businesses in their own countries to make a life in Britain.

However, recent changes to the rules, and the decision to implement them with retrospective effect, mean that even those already here would be required to apply again. Those who do not meet the new criteria such as higher income levels and qualifications face deportation.

The government claims that the changes were meant to prevent “abuse” of the system, following reports that many of those who came under the HSMP were found to be working in low-skilled jobs such as driving taxis or attending on tables.

The move, especially to apply the new rules retrospectively, has been widely criticised with a cross-party committee of MPs and peers accusing the government of “cheating” thousands of immigrants by arbitrarily changing the rules.

Mr. Nath, who was here to attend a meeting of the U.K.-India Joint Economic and Trade Commission, said: “I have raised the concern of the government of India on the HSMP issue during the bilateral discussions … and they have assured us that they would like to see it is ironed out.”

Other issues discussed during the talks, ahead of Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s visit to India next month, included fast-track registration of Indian medical personnel in Britain and “short-term visas” for IT professionals to come and work in Britain.

Book launched

Earlier, speaking at the launch of his book, India’s Century: The Age of Entrepreneurship in the World’s Biggest Democracy, he urged the new generation of Indian entrepreneurs to be globally competitive and keep pace with the rapidly changing technologies. He highlighted the challenges posed by globalisation and emerging technologies with an increasingly shorter shelf-life. Consumer preferences were also changing fast, making it imperative for businesses to be both innovative and competitive.

The book, launched at a gathering of businessmen and political figures, explores India’s economic “miracle” — its transformation from a struggling Third World economy to an emerging economic superpower.

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