Regions feel effects of immigration

12 April 2012

Many UK regions have reported concerns about the impact of immigration on housing, crime and health, according to a study on migrants from eastern Europe.

Feedback from the Government's regional co-ordination groups, to be presented to the Migration Impact Forum (MIF) in Whitehall, said migrants are putting pressure on the housing market and driving up rents, creating increased demand on GPs and contributing to tensions in the community.

The report going before the MIF reports that Sheffield and the East Midlands said there are increased demands on GPs.

And there are also concerns about an increase in low-level crimes such as driving offences and anti-social behaviour and community tensions in the North West, South West and Scotland.

The MIF, chaired by two ministers, was set up in June this year to gather evidence and recommend ways of dealing with challenges raised by immigration across the country.

The MIF meets for a second time on Wednesday for a first review of the regional picture. A presentation prepared for the impacts forum warns that pressures are being felt across five key areas: crime and disorder, community cohesion, health, education and housing.

It will reach a view on the impact on Britain of Romania and Bulgaria joining the EU at the start of this year, he added.

Cabinet will then decide by the end of the year whether to lift visa restrictions imposed on the two countries.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Sign up you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy notice .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in