So many Brits now live abroad that they're causing immigration debates. Oh, the irony

In an ideal world, every time your local racist started referring to that pesky problem of immigrants “stealing our jobs”, every British immigrant would appear, singing a heavenly chorus of: “Britain has more immigrants living abroad than India, China, Bangladesh, Poland and Hun-gar-reeeee!”

Why are so many of us leaving Britain? Is it the crap weather? The lack of affordable housing? The far-reaching ramifications of colonialism smoothing our way as we migrate around the world? A combination of the above? Whatever the reason, according to a new report from the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, Britain has a greater proportion of its citizens living overseas than any other European country.
As a recent British economic immigrant to the Netherlands, it doesn’t surprise me that the issue of British-born immigrants is widely ignored by anti-immigration factions in the UK. It’s a highly inconvenient truth that 3.97 million British citizens were living abroad in 2010 - and since then their numbers have grown to the point that the House of Lords are currently debating whether overseas Brits should be able to vote in the EU referendum.We are many and mighty, with enough voting clout to swing a decision. No wonder Ukip are reluctant to draw attention to us.
Madeleine Sumption, the director of the University of Oxford Migration Observatory, has been quoted in The Times saying: “We normally think of the UK mainly as a destination for migrants, but it also has a long history of emigration... The OECD data suggest that Brits are more mobile than many other countries with similar levels of development, like Germany, France or the United States.”

Among the British people moving abroad are 1.5 million are people with graduate level education, and they are moving in response to Britain’s lack of economic opportunities - so basically the same economic profile as most of the immigrants currently moving to Britain. Despite the similarities it’s clear that for many anti-immigration advocates there is one rule for Britain and another rule for everyone else: we can go there but they can’t come here. This worldview benefits both British people moving abroad and British people back home who want to scapegoat immigrants for all of Britain’s social problems.
It’s a view that’s increasingly hard to defend when faced with the OCED’s data. The report is also an untapped resource for campaigners looking to battle extremist groups like Ukip and Britain First. In an ideal (and way more fun) world, every time your local racist started referring to that pesky problem of immigrants “stealing our jobs”, every British immigrant would appear, hovering 6 feet in the air and singing a heavenly chorus of: “Britain has more immigrants living abroad than India, China, Bangladesh, Poland and Hun-gar-reeeee!”
But until we get the harmonies sorted, let’s just concentrate on making sure that all anti-immigration rhetoric also includes British immigrants.

If British people and media outlets are going to campaign against high numbers of immigrants coming to Britain, they should be forced to consider what the reverse of those policies will be. If we are right to worry about immigrants stealing British jobs, should we prevent our own citizens from moving abroad? If Theresa May is going to place restrictions on international students, then should we recall all the British students currently studying overseas?
The OECD report shows that there are enough British immigrants living abroad for this to be more than just a thought exercise; it’s a duty of care we owe the international community. How can we condemn immigrants from other countries when our own citizens are roaming around the world, working hard, paying taxes, integrating into their new communities, doing all those things that Ukip are apparently so worried about other people doing? It just makes no sense. Perhaps, after all the rhetoric, it’s time to face the surprising immigration facts.

http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/so-many-brits-now-live-abroad-that-theyre-causing-immigration-debates-oh-the-irony-a6723006.html


Well, well, well.  Fancy that

and I wonder how many of those emigrant immigrant brits are going abroad to scrounge of the social system of the host country....

how many are going places that provide them with free medical care at the drop of a hat without requiring any sort of contribution?

how many are turning up "over there" DEMANDING housing and basically all the luxuries of life handed on a plate....

no...I bet more than 95% are either retired (and thus independantly wealthy) or going to take up a specific post, rather than just turning up "hoping" for a job and expecting to be "kept" in the meantime


how many are going "over there...and sending "child benefit" home to the missus, often for non existant kids and for kids who are back home with te missus????

EXACTLY ...all those locations that the lovely Queen owns and only those lofty people on her 'select list' that have access to those ISLANDS and 'Club Med' type locations; all the staff and people that have lived and worked for those hierarchy for generations.  Might find it rather difficult to just 'POP' back to the home land   

And least we forget about all of those laborers - traveling back and forth to those bordering nations that are still part of the EU ...gee what happens when the 'free pass' won't be accepted any longer

Lots of things people really need to THINK DEEPLY about but keeping the eye on that 'magic 8 ball' and listening to those people sprinkling that 'Fairy Dust' won't keep you employed across the border when that nations say's NO MORE WORK 4 U - GO TAKE CARE OF YOUR OWN!

Revealed: thousands of Britons on benefits across EU
• At least 30,000 Britons on unemployment benefit in EU, Guardian research shows
• Unemployed Britons in richer EU states outnumber claimants from those countries in UK

Unemployed Britons in Europe are drawing much more in benefits and allowances in the wealthier EU countries than their nationals are claiming in the UK, despite the British government’s arguments about migrants flocking in to the country to secure better welfare payments.
At least 30,000 British nationals are claiming unemployment benefit in countries around the EU, research by the Guardian has found, based on responses from 23 of the 27 other EU countries.
The research shows more than four times as many Britons obtain unemployment benefits in Germany as Germans do in the UK, while the number of jobless Britons receiving benefits in Ireland exceeds their Irish counterparts in the UK by a rate of five to one.
more at

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2015/jan/19/-sp-thousands-britons-claim-benefits-eu

I saw a program about expats living abroad recently. Many were saying that they are voting to remain in the EU but if they were living in the UK they would be voting to leave. How extremely hypocritical and selfish of them.

They not only want their cake and eat it, they want to regurgitate it and eat it again..

funny how suddenly this has become restricted to eu migration......

elan wrote:I saw a program about expats living abroad recently. Many were saying that they are voting to remain in the EU but if they were living in the UK they would be voting to leave. How extremely hypocritical and selfish of them.

Personally I don't think people who have emigrated should be allowed to vote. If they chose not to live here why should they have the privilege?
At the moment they still have the right till they have been away for 15 years....why?

Syl wrote:

elan wrote:I saw a program about expats living abroad recently. Many were saying that they are voting to remain in the EU but if they were living in the UK they would be voting to leave. How extremely hypocritical and selfish of them.

Personally I don't think people who have emigrated should be allowed to vote. If they chose not to live here why should they have the privilege?
At the moment they still have the right till they have been away for 15 years....why?

They might return so they still need to be able to have a say?

Wrong i agree.

elan wrote:

Syl wrote:

Personally I don't think people who have emigrated should be allowed to vote. If they chose not to live here why should they have the privilege?
At the moment they still have the right till they have been away for 15 years....why?

They might return so they still need to be able to have a say?

Wrong i agree.

Well then if they return they can be re-register to vote.

Syl wrote:

elan wrote:

They might return so they still need to be able to have a say?

Wrong i agree.

Well then if they return they can be re-register to vote.

I was thinking more about the EU vote really as there won't be another one of those i wouldn't think.

Ah bless, 'Major' gave me a red for pointing out so many Brits don't want to live here!

elan wrote:

Syl wrote:

Well then if they return they can be re-register to vote.

I was thinking more about the EU vote really as there won't be another one of those i wouldn't think.

All the more reason why people who don't reside here should not have the right to choose in or out then.

Syl wrote:

elan wrote:

I was thinking more about the EU vote really as there won't be another one of those i wouldn't think.

All the more reason why people who don't reside here should not have the right to choose in or out then.

Not sure I agree with you on that, because many of they started businesses etc because we are in the EU, and would not have done so if we weren't.   Therefore, if that status is going to be changed they should have a right to vote, because they will have to return if we come out.

sassy wrote:

Syl wrote:

All the more reason why people who don't reside here should not have the right to choose in or out then.

Not sure I agree with you on that, because many of they started businesses etc because we are in the EU, and would not have done so if we weren't.   Therefore, if that status is going to be changed they should have a right to vote, because they will have to return if we come out.

Good point. But I was thinking more of the retired expats who sell up and move to warmer climes without a thought of returning.

I don't blame them, I just don't think they should have a say in how the country they have left is run.

Okay so do they list the ethnicity of the Brits out of interest who are claiming?

sassy wrote:Revealed: thousands of Britons on benefits across EU
• At least 30,000 Britons on unemployment benefit in EU, Guardian research shows
• Unemployed Britons in richer EU states outnumber claimants from those countries in UK

Unemployed Britons in Europe are drawing much more in benefits and allowances in the wealthier EU countries than their nationals are claiming in the UK, despite the British government’s arguments about migrants flocking in to the country to secure better welfare payments.
At least 30,000 British nationals are claiming unemployment benefit in countries around the EU, research by the Guardian has found, based on responses from 23 of the 27 other EU countries.
The research shows more than four times as many Britons obtain unemployment benefits in Germany as Germans do in the UK, while the number of jobless Britons receiving benefits in Ireland exceeds their Irish counterparts in the UK by a rate of five to one.
more at

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2015/jan/19/-sp-thousands-britons-claim-benefits-eu

That is misleading as its comparing the whole of the Eu to that of the Uk.
In other words its omiting how many of other EU nationals claiming throughout the rest of the EU.
That is just daft.
Its comparing the combined British nationals throughout the EU on benefit, to only those EU nationals claiming here but not comparing the same for EU nationals, as it only offers up UK stats.
So can we have an actual proper comparrison, of overall benefits claimed as has been done for British nationals, of which again how many of these Brits were foreign born?

What, Didge, you're saying native-born Brits wouldn't claim benefits?

Ben Reilly wrote:What, Didge, you're saying native-born Brits wouldn't claim benefits?

Did i claim that?

Please show where i did?

I simply asked how many werer foreign born, out of interest, as many foreigners are British nationals.

Second, the stats used were as seen a poor comparrison

If you don't live in this country you have no right to vote wheather to stay or leave.

IF you are only away temporaly that's a different matter!

nicko wrote:If you don't live in this country you have no right to vote wheather to stay or leave.

IF you are only away temporaly that's a different matter!

You do have the right to vote Nicko, as long as you have not lived abroad for longer than 15 years.