Three weeks until the election

[Trinidad]

OK, Jean-Claude Junker is the name. You could have looked this up too.

Ah. Now, we are getting somewhere...

 

And Jean-Claude Junker has the power to decide that the UK has to accept tens of thousands immigrants from across the Mediterranean?

 

Does he?

 

No, he doesn't. He is allowed to voice his opinion, and his opinion probably matters more than yours or mine. But he has no power whatsoever to determine what the UK must do.

 

Rik

[blackshoe]

I googled this guy Juncker. He's the President of the European Commission, the Executive of the EU. Apparently, he's written a book called Ruling Europe. Interesting title, that.

 

Headline in the Times a couple days ago: "Brussels forces Britain to accept Med migrants". According to the underlying article, though, Brussels only plans to do that. I can only say "good luck with that."

[kenberg]

the cited article begins:

In two days’ time (Wednesday May 13^th), the EU Commission is due to present a communication on a new EU immigration and asylum agenda. I’ll look at this agenda in detail later, but one key issue calls for comment already: will the UK have an opt-out from mandatory refugee quotas?

 

Watching this from afar, the first sentence rather than the second is the one that gets my attention. For my fellow Americans who, like me, have only a general knowledge of the issue I offer a May 11 article from BBC.

 

[mike777]

Accepting new immigrants sounds like a win, win for the UK. they will need to replace the Scots in a few years and they will need many many more young people to pay for the HOLY NHS

 

Hopefully the USA will take in thousands and welcome them with open arms. We need them for many reasons, not the least to pay for my future social security payments

[hrothgar]

We need them for many reasons, not the least to pay for my future social security payments

 

I would think that you would treat the destruction of your social security payments as a wonderful opportunity for a creative new life as a Walmart greeter.

After all, this is what you preach to everyone else.

[Vampyr]

Ah. Now, we are getting somewhere...

 

And Jean-Claude Junker has the power to decide that the UK has to accept tens of thousands immigrants from across the Mediterranean?

 

Does he?

 

No, he doesn't. He is allowed to voice his opinion, and his opinion probably matters more than yours or mine. But he has no power whatsoever to determine what the UK must do.

 

I said "told" not (yet) forced. God, why do you have to be so boring?

[mike777]

I would certainly view working as a greeter at Walmart a very honorable job to have in my older days esp at our local store.

 

I was just thinking about that at my local homedepot the other day, that might be a pretty neat job.

 

I suppose the job I would really enjoy would be as a greeter at my local movie theater, but they have a great guy there now.

 

In any event I hope we welcome the immigrants into the USA with open arms.

[Trinidad]

I googled this guy Juncker. He's the President of the European Commission, the Executive of the EU. Apparently, he's written a book called Ruling Europe. Interesting title, that.

 

Headline in the Times a couple days ago: "Brussels forces Britain to accept Med migrants". According to the underlying article, though, Brussels only plans to do that. I can only say "good luck with that."

So, more information emerges: It wasn't Junker who said it. It was the Times who wrote that "Brussels said...."

 

Any European who has been paying attention in school would know that "Brussels" (or the European Commission or the President of the European Commission or the European Parliament) doesn't have the power to decide on such matters.

 

Since not everybody on BBF went to school in Europe, here are some quick Q&A's:

 

Who in Europe can then decide on such matters?

The European Council of Ministers can.

 

Who are these people?

These are the relevant cabinet ministers of each EU country. Each country (that includes the UK) has a veto right. So, "Brussels" can only determine that the UK has to accept some number of migrants (as an aside: the EU is talking about refugees, rather than migrants, which is a big difference) if the UK government agrees on it.

So to put it very straight: Cameron can simply say "NO"?

Indeed, he can just say "NO".

Will saying "NO" have any consequences for the UK?

Well... err... those countries who want Cameron to say "YES" could then decide to say "NO" to things that the UK would like them to say "YES" to. So the UK would loose some credit, goodwill, or bargaining power, but other than that there are no consequences.

 

Rik

[mike777]

But again why say no....the benefits seem to far outweigh the near term costs and headaches.

 

the UK like many countries is aging, you need young hard working immigrants to grow the country. a win win for everyone.

[Vampyr]

But again why say no....the benefits seem to far outweigh the near term costs and headaches.

 

the UK like many countries is aging, you need young hard working immigrants to grow the country. a win win for everyone.

 

Where did you get the idea that they are young or hard-working?

[Trinidad]

God, why do you have to be so boring?

I don't know why god has to be so boring, but the question seems off-topic.

 

Rik

[mike777]

Where did you get the idea that they are young or hard-working?

 

 

So you are suggesting they are not?

 

1) From the news they look young

2) It takes a lot of work to be a refuge and survive, not for the lazy.

 

the very old, very sick, very lazy would be the first to die.

[hrothgar]

I would certainly view working as a greeter at Walmart a very honorable job to have in my older days esp at our local store.

 

I was just thinking about that at my local homedepot the other day, that might be a pretty neat job.

 

I suppose the job I would really enjoy would be as a greeter at my local movie theater, but they have a great guy there now.

 

Let's check back in after a few years on the job.

 

Me, I am planning a dissolute retirement.

Not sure whether its going to be in Ecuador or Morocco or Boston, but there shall be wine, women, song, and cats.

[mike777]

Enjoy your retirement Richard.

 

Having been retired for a number of years now, getting out of the house and working as a greeter at my local area stores sounds like something different that I might enjoy. If I can do half the great job the guy does at the local movie house I would be proud.

 

As for right now it is back to the lawn work.

[Vampyr]

So you are suggesting they are not?

 

1) From the news they look young

2) It takes a lot of work to be a refuge and survive, not for the lazy.

 

the very old, very sick, very lazy would be the first to die.

 

Many collect benefits. Failed asylum seekers just stay illegally, and don't pay taxes or in any way support the health care, schools etc that they use.

 

In Calais, there are advisers who assist those who enter the country by holding onto the Eurostar.

 

Australia has the right idea.

[mike777]

Many collect benefits. Failed asylum seekers just stay illegally, and don't pay taxes or in any way support the health care, schools etc that they use.

 

In Calais, there are advisers who assist those who enter the country by holding onto the Eurostar.

 

Australia has the right idea.

 

Of course some do and there are short term costs.

 

You seem to believe most if not all of them do. You don't say there are any benefits, huge benefits. You only seem to look at the costs and I agree there are costs.

 

Sorry but they said the same thing about the Jews in the 30's. The usa to its shame turned many away, many who would have made this country better.

[helene_t]

Earlier this year, the Home Office deported a foreign-born lecturer at the University of Nottingham with a young family, because her high-profile international fieldwork meant she was outside of the UK for more days than allowed on her visa. She couldn’t have known this was coming: the time limit came into force in 2012 and was applied retrospectively to her research travels in previous years.

 

http://www.theguardian.com/science/blog/2015/may/12/what-will-a-conservative-government-mean-for-uk-science

 

So much for British immigration policies.

[helene_t]

I guess that I don't take Texas secession as a serious possibility but when it comes up I have an inclination to say "So if you want to go, go." I haven't seen this reaction much discussed but surely there must be some in London who feel that way toward the Scots, and some in Europe who feel that way toward the UK. Cameron has promised to re-negotiate the terms of EU membership and then put it to a vote. This can sound a lot like "Here is a list of things that you can do for us, and if you agree to do them then maybe we will stick around, and maybe we won't".

Scotland may be comparable to Texas in this respect. Many people have this strange patriotic/nationalistic/imperialistic sentiment which I never understood. I know that some people in Denmark are upset by the thought of territorial losses (I have even had history teachers who very obviously had such sentiments). I am sure that a significant number of English people would be similarly adverse to losing Scotland (or Northern Ireland, or the Falklands).

 

As for UK leaving EU I think it is much less of an emotional issue. I wonder how big a proportion of the continental Europeans even know that UK is an EU member. For those who know it would more be a cost/benefit issue. Probably few would see an advantage in having UK leaving the EU and many would see disadvantages of it. But it wouldn't feel like a territorial loss.

 

What was the public reaction to the loss of Hong Kong? It happened before my time here.

[NickRW]

What was the public reaction to the loss of Hong Kong? It happened before my time here.

 

I don't remember there being a great deal of emotion expressed - some in the media perhaps - but not much amongst ordinary people. We had a lease on Hong Kong - everybody knew it was coming to the end.

[NickRW]

As for UK leaving EU I think it is much less of an emotional issue.

 

Au contraire. I hate the EU. I freely admit that I have relatively little rational reason for it (or indeed little reason to like it either). I just hate it.

 

Same with the Scots and their view of the rest of the UK. A lot of them simply don't want to be part of it.

 

It is about a sense of identity.

[helene_t]

Oh I am sure about that. I was taking about what continental Europeans think about uk leaving.

[NickRW]

Oh I am sure about that. I was taking about what continental Europeans think about uk leaving.

 

Well, if they feel the same as I (as an Englishman) feel about Scotland, I wouldn't be surprised if they're glad to see the back of us. Not that I hate the Scots - quite the reverse in fact - it is just they've never been happy campers in the Union - so go - just go and good luck,

[Vampyr]

Well, if they feel the same as I (as an Englishman) feel about Scotland, I wouldn't be surprised if they're glad to see the back of us.

 

I doubt that. Who will pay Spanish olive farmers to sit on their verandah drinking sangria if a relatively wealthy country with low unemployment leaves the EU?

 

Unlike you, I have a lot of rational reasons for wanting out of Europe. I am not going to go into any detail, but I find that the UK comes out the loser on every issue. Basically we are the mugs, and they need us a lot more than we need them (which IMO is not at all).

 

A slightly different matter is that it seems to me that the loss of sovereignty kind of creeps up, with the end result being finding yourself in a United States of Europe, which you never planned to be a part of.

 

Oh, and did anyone notice that we were promised a referendum on the EU "Constitution"? But then they changed a few words, said it was magically not a constitution any longer, and hey presto, no need for a referendum.

[helene_t]

The UK has been told that it must take tens of thousands of migrants crossing the Mediterranean, and presumably cannot simply take them and then send them home. For many British this will be the last straw.

I am sure many people see it that way but the West has some responsibility for the mess in the Middle East, I don't see why Tony Blair's country can't take a few thousands refugees when Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan have taken millions.

 

OK, West Africans in Libya is a slightly different issue but many of those people are actually entitled to assylum if they manage to get to som safe country. I don't think it is fair that Italy takes all of them just because the boats happen to sink in their waters.

[WellSpyder]

Oh, and did anyone notice that we were promised a referendum on the EU "Constitution"? But then they changed a few words, said it was magically not a constitution any longer, and hey presto, no need for a referendum.

Yes, I noticed. My wife keep asking me why anybody believes we are going to have a referendum on the EU this time round when we were promised one last time but never had it...