Prime Minister Gordon Brown promised to tighten controls over immigrants with new requirements for knowing the English language in order to be admitted. His goal is creating 500,000 British jobs for British citizens by reducing the number of immigrants allowed to enter. Currently, only those seeking “high skill” jobs must be conversant in English while unskilled workers have no such requirement. The new Brown proposal will add knowledge of English to unskilled immigrant requirements.
Brown is urging a partnership between business and government job centers in which unskilled British workers would receive internships in order to help prepare them for getting permanent employment. The assumption behind the proposal is that those not currently employed in England seek entry level jobs and will jump at the opportunity for an internship. It is doubtful if there is concrete evidence to support his hope.
