Posted on 2017-05-15 | 10:16

Immigration is a highly emotive and controversial issue. Roger has always been prepared to talk about this issue because he knows lots of people are concerned. Here he sets out his views.

“According to the Office of National Statistics (ONS), an official Government Department, Britain’s population is projected to increase from 63.7 million to 73.3 million by 2037. Of the 9.6 million projected increase 5.4 million will be due to the difference between death and birth rates while 4.2 will be because of net migration – more people entering the country than those leaving.

There are already many people without work and many more people working part-time or on zero hours contracts because they cannot find full-time work. Therefore we should be asking ourselves how many working people we need in order to pay for the cost of an increasing number of people living longer. The ONS predicts there will be 16.1 million retired people by 2037.

I have always made my position quite clear. We already have a sustainable population here and do not need to have more people settling here. Some commentators say that more immigration boosts economic growth – but this is only half true? A bigger population means more economic activity – more people buying goods and services – but it also puts much greater strain on essential services – housing, education, the hospitals and doctors surgeries. Furthermore with so many people in low paid jobs the amount of income tax collected by the Inland Revenue is falling and this means that we are struggling to provide funding to increase these services.

It is common sense that we need to control the size of our population. We are not short of people in the country and I believe we should have a balanced migration policy with the number entering and leaving the UK in balance. We cannot have unrestricted immigration if we want to control the size of our population. Visitors and students should be welcomed because they are not migrants. They sustain the tourist industry and universities – but they should not be permitted to stay permanently.

Who supports more immigration? Big business and the supporters of open markets who want to pay the lowest wages possible by choosing from the biggest pool of labour; some employers who do not want the cost of training young British job seekers; some rich and influential people who want cheap domestic help to clean their houses, tend their gardens, wash their cars and look after their children; and fervent supporters of ‘free movement of people’ within the countries of the European Union.

On the other hand the people of the UK have never been asked whether they want more people to be allowed to settle in the UK nor have they been asked whether they want to have an ever increasing population! I have consistently argued, and spoken in the House of Commons, about immigration and the need for a ‘population policy’. It is common-sense that we choose who we want to come and settle in this country.

If any UK citizen wants to go and live in America, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Russia or China then they have to, quite rightly, get the permission of that country and we should operate a similar system. Anybody who used to talk about the subject ran the risk of being labelled ‘a racist’ – but the issue of immigration and the size of our population is of concern to lots of my constituents including many first, second and third generation immigrants themselves! I will continue to talk about it - outside and inside the House of Commons.”