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Local authorities called on Thursday for a fresh approach to calculating the number of migrant workers in Britain, saying official statistics significantly underestimated the level.
They asked the government for a 250 million pound fund to bail out councils hit by the unbudgeted cost of providing services for the extra workers, many from eastern Europe.
The appeal comes after ministers admitted this week that 1.1 million foreign nationals had come to work in Britain in the last 10 years, far more than the 800,000 it had said previously.
Immigration has become a hot political issue over concerns that rapid migration has undercut British-born workers, as well as putting a strain on public services.
Many councils — with budgets partly set according to the size of local population — are out of pocket, the Local Government Association (LGA) said.
Westminster City Council, in the heart of London, said at least 24,000 residents had been missed by official estimates, equivalent to a 12 million pound annual funding shortfall.
“Official statistics on how many migrants are coming and where they are going are inadequate,” said LGA Chairman Simon Milton.
“No-one has a real grasp of where or for how long migrants are settling so much needed funding for local services isn’t getting to the right places.”
He said the government should look at additional sources of information such as registrations with family doctors, new National Insurance Numbers and school census data.
A report commissioned by the LGA found that migrant workers were benefiting Britain by 40 billion pounds a year, but that insufficient funding in some areas was leading to strains on local health services, housing and schools.
The government on Tuesday said it would prolong curbs on Bulgarians and Romanians looking for jobs in the country, in response to concerns over the pressure on public services.
Britain was the only big European Union country to let citizens of new member states work without restriction when the bloc added 10 mainly Eastern European members in 2004.
How about send all the polish basterds home! Let them drain there own resources!
I for one see no real benefits in migration and has for all the money they are making for us, well any good account would tell you numbers can be “manipulated to show a beneficial result”
The council tax system has been a joke for many years and needs reform.
So let me spell it out for you all.
Immigrates rent rooms, not houses, so don’t pay council tax.
The one from the EEC get the full welfare package such has family credit from the day they arrival.
There all low paid so are on the lower rate of tax.
Most received some form of benefits from free health care or access to support services.
What is happing is simple, the councils in the south are asking for some of the money back that currently goes to the deprived areas in the north of England and Scotland.
I don’t know why there making all pay an extra 10% in council tax each year for theses areas anyway.
Face it, more immigration means more long-term people on sickness benefit and social problems.
How many of the Asians and African are now claiming long term benefits 40 years on from the last wave of immigration?
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