MigrationWatch media response to item on 'Today' programme

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March 22, 2005

On the Today programme on Radio Four on March 22 there was a discussion between Immigration Minister Des Browne MP and Peter Lilley MP on current immigration levels into the UK. Mr Lilley made the point that over the next 30 years, according to the Government’s own figures, the population of the UK would increase by 5 million as a result of immigration. Mr Browne said ‘I do not believe that these figures are going to materialise.’

Commenting on the Minister’s remarks Sir Andrew Green, chairman of Migrationwatch said: ‘It is astonishing that a Government minister should deny the validity of the Government’s own population projections.

‘Having seen the concern with which the present scale of immigration is viewed by all sections of the community it seems they now to want to deny the consequences of their actions as their full extent is becoming more widely understood.

‘A reduction seems most unlikely as Government assumptions about future immigration have consistently been well below the actual outturn. In fact even higher numbers are likely as the government’s policies contribute to continually rising immigration and they have themselves repeatedly said that they ‘see no upper limit’ to legal immigration.