Britain will not be flooded by waves of Bulgarian and Romanian immigrants after restrictions are lifted in January 2014, according to a think tank.
A report from the Institute for Public Policy Research pointed out that Romanians and Bulgarians have been able to work in the UK since 2007, with their numbers increasing to 158,000 after the first three months of 2012.
Germany, France and the Netherlands, are also opening up their labour markets to Bulgaria and Romania, offsetting a concentration on the UK, with the report adding this should actually lower the proportion of immigrants coming to the UK in January 2014.
The IPPR predicts the shape of migration at the beginning of next year will be different from that seen in 2004 when many Eastern Europeans moved to the UK in search of better lives. 711,000 migrants came to the UK between 2004 and 2012 as a result of access to labour market. The report also said government attempts to prevent migrants from coming to the UK through restricting benefits and tightening border controls would not work.
Written and presented by Alfred Joyner
