David Cameron knows that immigration is an issue that bothers voters, and that the mainstream parties have snubbed it in recent years to their detriment. So his speech today is partly an attempt to regain ground from UKIP, which fought a campaign in Eastleigh that was all about immigration, bringing every gripe back to that. He also knows, as I explained on Friday, that Tory MPs are preparing for the first dedicated Commons debate on Bulgarian and Romanian migrants, and he wants to take some of the steam out of that by announcing clear measures to reduce the ‘pull factor’. Those measures, which the Prime Minister will detail in a speech in Ipswich, include:
- Cutting access to benefits for non-UK nationals after 6 months. At that point they have to prove they have sought work and have a genuine chance of getting a job.
- Closing a loophole which means some immigrants are able to claim contributory benefits when they do not have the right to work in the UK.
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