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| 'English test' for visa applicants: UK parliamentarians |
| Press Trust of India / London Nov 15, 2009, 13:51 IST |
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As Britan moves to tighten rules for immigrants, top parliamentarians have called for a compulsory "English test" for those applying for UK visas, a move that could impact thousands of Indians seeking to move to the country.
The British lawmakers warned that stringent new checks were necessary to curb abuses of the system and bring immigration "firmly and fairly under control".
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Grayling and the Liberal Democrat Home Affairs spokesman Chris Huhne asked the three main parties to adopt a "common approach" to immigration as Prime minister Gordon Brown vowed to curb immigration to the UK.
Former Labour social Security Minister Frank Field and former Conservative Party Defence Minister Nicholas Soames also underlined the need for new restrictions on spouses coming into the country, the Daily Mail said today.
They were quoted as saying by the British tabloid that immigrants should demonstrate they can speak English so they can "participate satisfactorily in our society, be able to find work, and know their rights and responsibilities."
In an open letter to Home Secretary Alan Johnson, Grayling and Huhne said, "It is necessary to deal with a number of abuses of the present system if immigration is to be brought more firmly and fairly under control."
Those seeking entry to the UK currently have to complete such a test before they are granted British citizenship, but the parliamentarians want the 'English language test' to be made part of the process to be extended to visa applicants.
Over the past three years, the UK has seen the introduction of e-Borders to check individuals in and out of the country and the implementation of the points-based system which ensures that only those who benefit the economy can come here to work.
Prime Minister Brown vowed on Thursday to shut the doors to highly skilled non-EU doctors and engineers, and said his government will consider denying visa to students seeking entry to short-term programmes.
Brown has pledged to tighten the new points-based entry system before the next general election in June next year as large-scale immigration had put key public services in the country under severe strain and may be turned into a key electoral issue by the right wing anti-immigrant parties.
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