Damian Chalmers

Is David Cameron about to make another migration promise he can’t fulfil – and distract from meaningful EU reform?

It is easy to understand David Cameron’s desire to make a ‘game changing’ speech on EU immigration. Voters are telling pollsters it is the issue that most concerns them, Ukip are breathing down his neck and it could be the swing issue in any future EU referendum.

However, he needs to play his cards carefully. By making a ‘big pledge’ on reducing numbers, the risk is that Mr Cameron needlessly raises expectations that are undeliverable and draws attention away from negotiable reforms to EU migrants’ access to the British welfare system that would concretely address the inconsistencies and perverse incentives undermining public confidence in free movement. These reforms would be far from simply symbolic, they would greatly increase the Government’s ability to target its welfare and employment policies at British citizens and reduce EU citizens’ incentive to migrate to the UK for low-income jobs.

The Government has already taken some steps to tighten domestic rules on EU migrants’ access to out of work benefits but a big problem lies with EU law, which severely limits what national governments are able to do, not only to restrict EU migrants’ access but to help their own citizens’ path into work.

Successive Governments have pursued welfare policies and subsidies, such as in-work tax credits, designed to counter benefit traps and create job opportunities so it will always ‘pay to work’. But, under EU law, these in-work benefits (unlike out of work benefits) must be immediately available to all EU citizens. Furthermore, the threshold for accessing these benefits is extremely relaxed, with work of twelve hours a week sufficient to qualify somebody. In-work benefits therefore no longer just promote local employment but also subsidise low-income migration from other parts of the EU.

Already a subscriber? Log in

Keep reading with a free trial

Subscribe and get your first month of online and app access for free. After that it’s just £1 a week.

There’s no commitment, you can cancel any time.

Or

Unlock more articles

REGISTER

Comments

Don't miss out

Join the conversation with other Spectator readers. Subscribe to leave a comment.

Already a subscriber? Log in