A file photograph showing British Prime Minister David Cameron (C) departing 10 Downing Street, central London 20 March 2013. Photo by EPA/BGNES
UK Prime Minister David Cameron has announced measures to restrict immigrants' access to state support for unemployment, housing and health care.
In his speech in Ipswich, Cameron, as cited by the BBC News, made clear that Europeans would lose unemployment support after six months unless they were able to prove that they were "genuinely seeking employment."
Cameron's speech comes after serious campaigning on the part of anti-EU UK Independence Party against easing immigration controls for Bulgarians and Romanians.
Cameron argued that there were "concerns, deeply held, that some people might be able to come and take advantage of our generosity without making a proper contribution to our country".
"These concerns are not just legitimate; they are right and it is a fundamental duty of every mainstream politician to address them," the UK Prime Minister declared.
Labor restrictions for Bulgarians and Romanians in the UK are to be lifted in 2014.
According to the Office of National Statistics, in July 2012 there were 94 000 Romanians and 47 000 Bulgarians resident in the UK.
"We can't stop these full transitional controls coming to an end. But what we can do, is make sure that those who come here from the EU - or further afield - do so for the right reasons: that they come here because they want to contribute to our country, not because they are drawn by the attractiveness of our benefits system, or by the opportunity to use our public services," Cameron stated.
He said immigrants in future would be "subject to full conditionality and work search requirements and you will have to show you are genuinely seeking employment - if you fail that test, you will lose your benefit."
He said that a migrant would be given six months to find a job, after which the benefits would be cut off unless they were able to prove prove they were genuinely seeking employment and that they had a genuine chance of getting a job.
"We're going to make that assessment a real and robust one and, yes, it's going to include whether your ability to speak English is a barrier to work," the UK Prime Minister said.
He also made clear that immigrants would be kept off council house waiting lists in England for at least two years, under plans for councils to introduce a residency test.
Cameron also announced that the penalties for hiring illegal immigrants would be doubled to GBP 20 000 per worker and private landlords would face fines for renting to them.