No Filipinos in UK crackdown vs migrants

INQUIRER.net
Posted date: September 17, 2009

MANILA, Philippines—Filipinos in the United Kingdom have “generally not been affected” by the ongoing crackdown of UK immigration authorities against so-called illegal migrants, the Department of Foreign Affairs said Thursday.

Citing the report of the Philippine embassy in London, the DFA said in a statement that Filipinos in the UK are “generally law-abiding,” and so far, no Filipino has been arrested or detained in the drive.

Philippine government statistics put the number of Filipinos in the UK as of December 2007 at 203,035. Of that number, 90,654 are permanent residents, 102,381 temporary residents, and 10,000 irregular residents.

The UK campaign targets foreigners “without appropriate work permits or other documentation, from Eastern European countries outside of the European Union, as well as those from Saharan and sub-Saharan Africa,” the DFA said.

Since 2007, the embassy has proposed to the United Kingdom Home Office the conduct of regular and official consultations on immigration concerns involving Filipinos in the UK.

The UK Border Agency launched a Points-Based Migration system in February 2008 to ensure that only those with the right skills or the right contribution can come to the United Kingdom to work or study.