BRITAIN: Britain left Ireland exposed last night as Home Secretary Mr David Blunkett imposed curbs on the rights of new EU nationals from the 10 accession countries entering the UK.
Proclaiming "proper, managed" migration "good for Britain", Mr Blunkett rejected a system of work permits in favour of a registration scheme as part of a dual strategy to fill gaps in Britain's labour market while promising regulations to protect the benefits system from abuse.
With ministers being accused of "panic," driven by lurid newspaper headlines forecasting a massive influx of foreign workers, Prime Minister Tony Blair pre-empted Mr Blunkett's Commons statement with the blunt warning that those unable to support themselves "will be put out of the country".
And Mr Blunkett told MPs that this bar on access to child, housing and other social security benefits would apply for at least two years.
However, the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Mr Andrew Smith, later told BBC Radio 4's PM programme that people would have to establish a clear working pattern for at least a year before they could be considered for benefits.
The minister was responding to questions about whether people who had entered the country lawfully, signed on with the new Home Office worker registration scheme, and then fell on hard times, would be forced to return to their country of origin.
Mr Blunkett rejected the Conservative preference for work permits, arguing this system could force people into the black economy and said the new register would enable the government to monitor the numbers arriving and the jobs they did.
He also suggested that if the registration scheme showed an imbalance in the labour market, then the government could reimpose restrictions.
"When we first set out our position, only those countries with high levels of unemployment were planning to introduce restrictions on work for accession nationals. Since then, other countries have changed their stance. It clearly makes sense for us to ensure our approach does not leave us exposed," Mr Blunkett said. He continued: "The measures we are announcing send a very clear message - if you register, you can come to the UK to work legally and contribute but you cannot claim benefits. The UK has always welcomed hard-working immigrants seeking to better themselves and contribute to our prosperity. Tougher benefit rules will make sure our generosity is not exploited."
The director of the Confederation of British Industry, Mr Digby Jones, said the government had struck "a sensible balance between allowing in the workers our economy needs and avoiding the dangers of excessive numbers."
While Mr Blunkett indicated he thought the Irish Government was considering whether it might replicate the measures he had introduced, immigration lawyer Ms Nicola Rodgers described them as "legally and morally reprehensible" and suggested they would be "discriminatory" in denying benefits to people from the new member-states otherwise available to British and existing EU members.
Mr Blunkett said the new register would prove a platform for an ID scheme that would eventually extend to all non-British nationals, while confirming: "We are moving to a national ID system for us all."