EU Workers: Cost in Context

So unskilled EU Workers are thrown under the spotlight – and the train – by the national media…again. This time it is the Express running with a headline of:  “Why Brexit MUST bring new visa rules: Unskilled migrants ‘cost UK tax payers over the amount because I really have no idea how they have calculated it..or qualified it. However, what I think is worth questioning is how and why anyone would bother making such and inflammatory statement, even now, well after the Brexit vote. The campaign time to make people angry with migrant workers is a constant issue that vastly pre-dated Brexit. What’s more, we’ve heard all these arguments before. Calls have been made for points based systems before – it’s all old news.

Of course, the tune has changed slightly and one has to wonder about the logic behind such a panic. Theresa May has caused genuine, hardworking, contributing families a lot of concern already. By refusing to even promise residency for those already here, especially to workers who are highly settled in the UK and skilled, this is just new fuel for the xenophobic fire. We’re facing a serious crisis in staffing for the NHS – the last thing we need is more scaremongering.

EU Workers only cost what we spend…just like everyone else

So let’s take a look at what £3500 cost of EU Workers really is.

Firstly, a family with one 20-a-day smoking habit spends over £3600 on cigarettes in a year.

A British person on JSA costs the tax payer over £3600 each year, and many of those have come out of education, having just cost the tax payer £5000+ per year to be educated in a state school.  So one British young person, unskilled and unemployed at the age of 18 has already cost the tax payer £70,000 before they go straight onto benefits of £3600+ a year.

A British prisoner – of which there are many – cost the tax payer at least £40,000 a year to keep in prison.

Of course I could go on, but these numbers vanish into the mist when you compare them to 10% pay rise the MPs pocketed (at least £7000 a year each) and the £250,000 a year government Champagne budget for the houses of parliament. That’s the houses of parliament with a £4-7Billion estimated restoration budget…

Perhaps the media xenophobic anti-immigration stance might want to put the EU Workers cost into some kind of perspective before trying to scapegoat Eu Workers. After all, they are coming to the UK for a great many reasons – most of them are honest, hard working people (give me evidence to the contrary, if you like). There just as many, or significantly more dishonest, out of work British people relying on the state and not making any real attempt to seek work when they can.

So when we ask the question as to what kind of costs or Visas or restrictions such unskilled workers should incur, it might be best to reflect on all the other costs to our public purse. Skilled or unskilled, is it right that we should see migrants solely as a source of income rather than people.