Eu Migrants 'add £5Bn' To Britain's Gdp

[richc]

According to the BBC EU immigrants add £5 billion to UK economy.

Sometimes, I simply despair of the stupidity of the UK media. If the economy grows 0.38%, but the population grows at 1.1%, then households are seeing a net loss in income (conveniently not mentioned in the article).

[Errol]

More drivel from the propaganda machine.

[newbonic]

More drivel from the propaganda machine.

True. You can drive up GDP simply by using more resources, which is inevitable in this case as houses, roads, hospitals and other infrastructure need buying, maintaining, heating, etc. That most of these resources appear to be financed via increased debt/taxes is also unmentioned in the Beeb article.

[Papa Serf]

Crime also adds loads to GDP doesn't make it a good thing though does it.

Still, if GDP goes down too much we could all sell a kidney or a lung, growth must be protected at all costs.

[TruraBuoy]

So it really depends on how the government wants to tell it!

Denmark's strict immigration laws have saved the country 6.7 billion euros, a government report has claimed. Even though Denmark already has some of the toughest immigration laws in Europe, right-wing populist politicians are now trying to make them even more restrictive.

Linky http://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/0,1518,759716,00.html#ref=nlint

[Ruffneck]

5 billion is feck all these days.

If these folks send half the money back to Poland it doesn't really help the UK economy much , would be far better for a permanent citizen to have those jobs.

[mark1]

More immigrants equal more tax income for BIG BROTHER even if he has to pay more out in tax to support them.

Im sure this country would be a much nicer place if Hitler had won the war.

[Ruffneck]

Im sure this country would be a much nicer place if Hitler had won the war.

In 5 years people will have as much freedoms as the German people did in 1939 , given that i would probably agree with you.

[@contradevian]

This is a major fail from an immigration point of view and how the BBC can spin this as positive is amazing. Giving the huge amounts of immigration we have witnessed over the past decade, we should have seen substantial growth. What growth we have had is on the back of debt creation. If the propaganda were to be believed the UK would be awash with cash from its new workers, tax payers and consumers. Sad fact is they have hardly made a difference other than impoverish the country at a slightly higher rate.

Edited May 1, 2011 by Sir John Steed

[Executive Sadman]

According to the BBC EU immigrants add £5 billion to UK economy.

Sometimes, I simply despair of the stupidity of the UK media. If the economy grows 0.38%, but the population grows at 1.1%, then households are seeing a net loss in income (conveniently not mentioned in the article).

This is the great fallacy of 'growth is good'

We could annex Rwanda; our 'economy' would 'grow' by Rwanda's GDP simply by adding it, and yet, on average as indivuals we'd be poorer. Far more people feeding at an only slightly bigger economic pie.

IMO, the key to a healthy economy is not growth, but balance, and given we have too many people exploiting too few resources (ie the polar opposite of countries like the USA that were built on immigration) every extra immigrant makes it harder to build a sucessful economy. Each new arrival means we need to import more fuel, more food, more commodities, and makes it that bit more difficult to have a sustainable trade balance.

And every time I hear the immigration is good lot, when out argued re: religious fanaticism, backward cultures, higher criminality, they turn to the 'at least theyre good for the economy' BS

Pull the other one. Even the pensions crisis excuse is ridiculous. Debt growing at 10-15% PA, immigration growing the pop. at 0.5% PA. Yeah, thats really going to make a dent in the situation, and thats assuming they all work and are of working age, and dont claim benefits and pay taxes. In the case of muslim immigrants specifically, thats highly unlikely...

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/article-23414382-mps-fear-c4-documentary-on-the-cost-of-immigrants-will-fuel-race-hatred.do

And this is only EU migrants, i suspect the non-EU ones are far more detrimental.

Youre right re: the UK media though: Its like their GDP worship, as if GDP rising in of itself is good. Id argue that assuming Government spending and exports are equal (theyre not, i know) and Exports rose by 10%, but government spending (ie mostly debt) fell by 12%, then we'd have a 2% GDP contraction - i'd say that's a good thing, its growth in the real economy. But we'd never know because the BBC never cover/analyse anything other than the headline figure. All we'd hear is 'GDP collapsing', when in truth, for most of the time of Browns "dozens of consecutive quarters of economic growth", the manufacturing sector was in recession.

[exiges]

How much has this immigration cost us then, I don't see any of it in the article.. Housing, healthcare, benefits, extra council resources required (translators etc)

[billybong]

The NIESR says the UK probably benefited from the restrictions imposed by other member states. It says Germany will suffer a "permanent scar" on its level of output, with its GDP reduced by between 0.1 and 0.5%.

Farcical.

I imagine Germany will just live with the "scar" as Germany's economy goes from strength to strength as the UK's economy continues to sink.

[sundance_kid]

Let me guess, they brought bags of entrepreneurial brilliance with them to the warehouse floors, janitor cupboards and car wash's of the UK did they?

It's mildly amusing how they paint success on the fact that they needed to get people from the other side of Europe to work in jobs uneconomical for the rest of us to work in.

[Bloo Loo]

5 billion is feck all these days.

If these folks send half the money back to Poland it doesn't really help the UK economy much , would be far better for a permanent citizen to have those jobs.

double bubble

first its £1 benefit for every £1 of GDP they add to, then £1 of exported investment.

[Executive Sadman]

double bubble

first its £1 benefit for every £1 of GDP they add to, then £1 of exported investment.

They even have a special word for it

http://www.remittance.in/

The PTB know, they just dont care.

[ken_ichikawa]

double bubble

first its £1 benefit for every £1 of GDP they add to, then £1 of exported investment.

Who can blame them? Magic printing press devalues money so quickly you've got to move out of soft currencies like the £ to a hard currency like Roubles, AU$, CHF or PMs.

[Ruffneck]

Who can blame them? Magic printing press devalues money so quickly you've got to move out of soft currencies like the £ to a hard currency like Roubles, AU$, CHF or PMs.

Nah , aussie money is no good.

It's made out of plastic so you can't light a fire or wipe your **** with it like you can US currency which will be all important in a couple years.

[whalewatcher]

Keeping the house warm by chopping up the furniture and throwing it on the fire...

It used to be that GDP was just an indicator of a healthy economy. Now we've substituted the symbol for the real thing. The economy is in the service of the GDP.

We have to push that number up, whatever it takes. Cronus must eat his children, Abraham must sacrifice Isaac, just keep worshipping that sacred number, the GDP.

[wonderpup]

It's also worth considering that had wages not been suppressed by the availability of all this cheap labour we would have more brits working, less on the dole and perhaps a healthier all round situation- including less pressure on housing and so less drive for HPI.

I don't blame the people who come here to better their lives- but it's hard not be suspicious of the policy makers who sat by and watched this huge number coming in- the winners seem to be employers and BTL owners- both of whom benefit from lots of new people arriving to take jobs and housing.

[South Lorne]

According to the BBC EU immigrants add £5 billion to UK economy.

Sometimes, I simply despair of the stupidity of the UK media. If the economy grows 0.38%, but the population grows at 1.1%, then households are seeing a net loss in income (conveniently not mentioned in the article).

...it isn't worth discussing ....where are the calculations..?....without it this is meaningless left wing propaganda .....ignore it ....or ask for the detail....

Edited May 1, 2011 by South Lorne

[Executive Sadman]

Keeping the house warm by chopping up the furniture and throwing it on the fire...

It used to be that GDP was just an indicator of a healthy economy. Now we've substituted the symbol for the real thing. The economy is in the service of the GDP.

We have to push that number up, whatever it takes. Cronus must eat his children, Abraham must sacrifice Isaac, just keep worshipping that sacred number, the GDP.

Pretty much my view for a number of years now.

Its almost got cult/religious status.

Never hear of income, purchasing power, unemployment vs employment, debt vs output, actual indicators of economic health.

All that matters is the debt GDP keeps going up.

I wonder who first proposed using GDP, now theres a conspiracy. Rothschilds? Bildeburg?

[MongerOfDoom]

5 billion is feck all these days.

If these folks send half the money back to Poland it doesn't really help the UK economy much , would be far better for a permanent citizen to have those jobs.

Just what are they going to do with British fiat currency in Poland? Since melting it down won't work, might the only option be to sell it to someone who wants to spend it in the UK?

[MongerOfDoom]

According to the BBC EU immigrants add £5 billion to UK economy.

Sometimes, I simply despair of the stupidity of the UK media. If the economy grows 0.38%, but the population grows at 1.1%, then households are seeing a net loss in income (conveniently not mentioned in the article).

No, the average income goes down. It is perfectly possible for both the existing and the immigrant populations to be better off.

Anyway, do you seriously blame the current economic mess on the immigrants? If so, you are Gordon Brown and I claim my fiver.

[northwestsmith2]

[Ruffneck]

Just what are they going to do with British fiat currency in Poland? Since melting it down won't work, might the only option be to sell it to someone who wants to spend it in the UK?

Exchange it at the banks.