Publications
Earned amnesty
bringing illegal workers out of the shadows
| Authors: | Demetrios G. Papademetriou and Will Somerville |
| Date of Publication: | July 2008 |
| ISBN: | 1-902622-71-5 |
How to deal with the estimated 500,000 illegal immigrants in the UK is one of the seemingly most intractable and emotive policy challenges facing government.
This pamphlet proposes a detailed strategy and rationale for an 'earned' regularisation programme, which identifies those illegal immigrants who contribute to British society. This would give some illegal immigrants the opportunity to attain permanent residency - producing fiscal gains for the government but also drastically reducing the numbers of illegal immigrants unknown to the security services.
Such a strategy has the capacity to enhance public safety, cement the rule of law, cut down on exploitation and foster greater social stability. A carefully crafted earned amnesty would move the policy discussion beyond the dead-end arguments for and against a 'blanket amnesty' and towards a more nuanced approach that deals with the complex realities of illegal immigration.
View the press release
Media Coverage:
The Times: Calls for immigrants to be legal for £5000
The Press Association: Illegal immigrants pay-to-stay idea
Politics.co.uk: Thinktank eyes illegal immigrant amnesty
Express: Illegal immigrants pay-to-stay idea
Guardian (Comment is Free): Safety First
Open Democracy: UK in denial over half million illegal immigrants