UK – Scotland in need of immigrants

[winterbadger]

10 November 2004

The first minister of Scotland, Jack McConnell, is determined to bring Scotland back on the map as a country where foreign skilled professionals would want to live and work. Without immigrants, the Scottish population is expected to decline drastically over the coming years.

McConnell's Fresh Talent initiative aims at promoting Scotland enough to attract 8,000 foreign professionals each year from now to 2009. There are also plans to grant visa extensions to foreign students who wish to stay after graduation. The first minister is presently discussing with the UK Home Office on a number of immigration initiatives.

Still, Scottish opposition leaders say McConnell's Fresh Talent will not solve the declining population problem in the country. They say Scotland is in need of 10,000 new immigrants every year just to keep the population steady.

Comments

[robbysmom.livejournal.com]

ok, WHICH professionals?

[winterbadger]

Hopefully something other than the standard UK scheme, which encourages appllications from people wishing to work in the hospitality industry, the meat-packing and seafood-processing industry, and from people with doctorates, 5-10 years experience at senior management levels, and national/international recognition.

And, of course, Westminster still ahs to grant Scotland the power to form separate policy on this score...

[robbysmom.livejournal.com]

and when we were in London, they were looking for social workers-- also not up your alley :-)

[blueinva.livejournal.com]

They might be looking for policemen. Apart from Taggart they all seem to be working in London and the Home Counties too...(honestly!)

[blueinva.livejournal.com]

Not a problem I wouldn't think, given that Scottish MPs have a large say in the current cabinet (and in the Shadow cabinet)
Perhaps Gordon Brown can take some time off from raising new taxes (85 and counting since he became Chancellor) to help out. But then he's got more important things like making sure the HRH comes off of the Inland Revenue and the like...

[blueinva.livejournal.com]

I have my own theory of how to get more people to move to Scotland. It's rather like my idea for getting more people to move to Wales...*grin*

[sharrainchains.livejournal.com]

I'd go either place, but what's your idea?

[blueinva.livejournal.com]

I get the feeling you're not going to be entirely on-board with my ideas, but to paraphrase Edmund Blackadder "the only problem with Wales is that it's full of the Welsh"...*grin*

I'm all in favour of sticking all of the Welsh and Scots on a boat and sending them somewhere that they'd feel right at home with their incessant whinging. Like Devil's Island or Australia maybe. That'd get more people to move over the Severn Bridge or up the A1...

But then I'm English so I might be a tad biased where my heathen brethren are concerned *huge grin*

[selki.livejournal.com]

I'm no fan of incessant whinging, but, ick.

[winterbadger]

Yeah, well, Blue is very English, as his given name (Sean) and those of his brothers (Shay and Patrick, aren't they?) indicate. :-)

[blueinva.livejournal.com]

My youngest brother's name is Chay and if you're being accurate my name is spelt Séan *wink*

And yes, as my friend points out I'm 100% purebred English with no Gaelic blood at any point in my lineage...Well, apart from all my mother's family, who are either still in Co. Cork or definitely pikey enough to play a part in the sequel to Snatch...
So, I do joke about my heathern brethern, especially the kilt wearers and the leek wavers, but it is genuinely in fun *soft smile* apart from Gordon Brown who really, truly ought to be deported to Devil's Island...*evil chuckle*

[selki.livejournal.com]

Mmm, kilt wearers! The two guys I'm seeing wear kilts. To dances. Yummy!

But, um ... "leek wavers"?

[winterbadger]

Welsh. For some reason (I forget why) one of the symbols of Wales is the leek. It's on the pound coin that represents Wales; Flewllyn refers to it in Henry V; and in the Royal Welch Fusiliers, new guests to the mess on St. David's Day have to stand on a chair and eat a (raw) leek. :-)

And they say the Scots are crazy...

[blueinva.livejournal.com]

The leek is the national 'flower' (shouldn't that be root vegetable) of Wales and you'll see on St David's Day plenty of Welsh people waving their leeks. I know it's strange, but no worse certainly than having a rose as your emblem (England), the shamrock (Ireland) or a thistle (Scotland). If you look at the rugby jerseys of the respective countries you'll see they display them with pride...

[blueinva.livejournal.com]

Aha! My European humour strikes...I was of course kidding, as you'll see if you look at my reply to J's reply to this...

Well, I'm with you about the Welsh ::grin:::

[sharrainchains.livejournal.com]

and I'm a major fan of incessant whinging - like the kind that the Irish have been doing for so many years. But then, I'm a Heinz 57 mix that includes a grandfather from Glasgow who wore black and tan each year on March 17th...

Re: Well, I'm with you about the Welsh ::grin:::

[blueinva.livejournal.com]

*laugh* I bet he was *so* popular...

[sun-in-splendor.livejournal.com]

Hmmmmm.... Why does this remind me of "Mars Needs Women"?