Refugees

Sorry, misread the time.

From Germany: the problem is that your journalists just don't understand enough German, especially spoken figures.

Germany has already taken 28,000 and another 30,000 OVER the next few years will bring the sum up to half a million. I think a million will be the end sum that is one refugee to 80 Germans.

I live in a wealthy town similar to Cheltenham and there are plans for our federal state of Baden Wurttenberg to build a centre for 1000 refugees or victims of catastrophies and it will be finished in 2017 and will have jobs for 15 in the medical centre etc.
Refugees are housed in group accomodation and never in private homes until they have been approved and accepted
This shows that Fr Merkel has grasped the chance for more higly qualified workers and of course their children.

I think some of the refugees will be professional people such as doctors; it would be a pity to waste their skills by offering them work picking fruit and vegetables when we may welcome their skills elsewhere.

Re housing shortage, wasn't one council (was it Stoke-on-Trent?) offering rundown houses for £1 provided people do them up and live in themselves, not rent them out? Sounds like a good idea and improves run down areas

The refugees we are suppose to be giving shelter to will only be allowed to stay five years, so an orphan if age ten when arriving here is out again age fifteen. What of children born to the families in those five years? I do wish Cameron would put brain in gear before opening his mouth

I do wonder what Assad's British born and educated wife thinks of all this bloodshed.
Does she think it is justified or is she terrified into submission?

Perhaps Syria will be at peace by then and people will wish to return to rebuild their homeland - with international help.
I do hope so, anyway.

Anyway, much may change in five years

Yes things may change rosequartz but what of the children? They will receive education , perhaps have foster families , in five years they have to leave ? What of the children born in the UK ?

I would assume there will be a re-think on children who are here without their own families.
Children born here will be British, surely?

This is all so urgent and broad brush at the moment; all these finer details will have to be worked out.

We live on the edge of the Cambridgeshire Fens - an area which employs hundreds of immigrant workers from Eastern Europe. It's all very well affluent Cambridge residents saying they will welcome refugees but the farming companies employing seasonal workers run a very tight ship. I can't see any of the Polish or Latvian workers who keep the big growers ticking over nicely tolerating any threat to their jobs.

Yes rosequartz, the children born here will be British, can we force British citizens out of the country ? This is why I say Cameron is too fond of hasty decisions . He has said twenty thousand will be given refuge by 2020, this means he could now bring in 500 this year, he has five years to spread the numbers out and will have stood down before 2020 . Sorry but I think him a very slippery eel

No, of course we can't force them out!
And they won't.

Well, people may think he has done wrong, perhaps legally he has? but he has announced it in the House and told the truth about what he has done; and it was the specific killing of two traitors who meant us harm.
Better than all the lies and shiftiness that preceded the killing of all those innocent people in Iraq.
And we still do not know the truth, or the truth about another British citizen, Dr David Kelly.
That made me feel physically sick, this time I feel pleased.

I remember a feature on TV recently about a lass who came here as an immigrant several years ago, did brilliantly in the education system and wanted to go to uni, but was being shipped off home as her visa/permission to stay had come to an end. She saw herself as British, spoke impeccable English and was totally integrated into British culture - she was distraught at being ripped from her "home".

But we don't know he is telling the truth rosequartz , yes he said what he has done , he has gone against the vote of the house. All we know is he claims there were attacks planned with terrorists in this country , he has the two men killed yet no charges against anyone in this country , no evidence of what attacks were planned either . We may now be in more danger from those in this country who find these killings unjust

Merlot

You raise a valid point that doesn't get enough of an airing for fear of being labelled far right / bigot/ racist to push the subject under the carpet so to speak.

I think we have been shielded from the 'disquiet' , to put it mildly, that immigration and asylum numbers have caused problems in other European countries. Our news coverage appears to be either 'reticent' or poor in picking up the problems other countries are facing.

Germany for example has recently had a case of suspected arson at a migrant shelter in Nauen and other centres albeit most of them were uninhabitited, an anti immigration riot at Heidenau and Merkel was booed recently. I have viewed reports on Russia Today / Aljazeera that do not get reported on here and it is a problem.

Sweden has had 3 mosques fire bombed , anti semitism is an issue , as it is in other countries, ethnic tensions are rising.

I am aware this is the doing of the far right parties/groups but it is a folly to think the recent influx of refugees/asylum applicants/economic migrants to Europe is not going to have an effect. Public emotion is running high at the moment but I genuinely fear for the heart over head scenario and I think it will produce problems in the not so distant future.

Luckygirl ,this is what worries me , will this happen to the children coming here now

Came across this by George Kerevan.

www.thenational.scot/news/george-kerevan-dont-believe-the-lies-about-uk-support-for-the-kindertransport.7266

Seems that even then, pre WWII, 'British Values' did not include a great deal of compassion, but rather an eye to the main chance.

True Granny 23

Margaret X

I am still confused as to Germany's position on 'numbers'.

Your post of 09.49 states that "Germany has already taken in 28.000 and another 30.000 over the next few years (Merkel has declared Germany will take 31.000 over the next 2 years) and it will bring the sum up to half a million , I think 1 million would be the sum".

Forgive me for pointing out that there is a vast difference between the 58.000 you say will be accepted by Germany in 2 years time and the half a million, million you and Germany have said it will take.

I don't understand how Germany is going to fulfil it's promise when the figures over the next 2 years are so incoherent with the sum it says it will take/have taken by 2017.

After 'cherry picking' those who are going to be valuable for Germany and it's employment requirements over the next two years how will Germany house those vast numbers entering Germany by the day, over 130.000 last week end alone.

It seems to me Merkel unilaterally decided Germany would temporarily suspend the Dublin Agreement but she expects other EU countries to cover her back by imposing her strength of power in the European Commission to demand the other 27 countries in the EU take in refugees. I think this will prove to be a problem for the EU . I also believe that once a German passport has been given the schengen area countries may wish to review the schengen agreement as obviously those who are given German citizenship will be able to move away from Germany to the other EU countries. Hence 'quotas' are basically only pertinent at the time of acceptance but can be used as a gateway to all EU countries.

I heard an anology of Germany's decision to take up to 800.000 refugees . It went something like this. 'It's a bit like inviting guests to your party but you demand others have to give them bed and breakfast , not yourself.' . I am not being flippant but I think that's how I feel. I think Germany may be put on a pedestal by some at the moment but I worry Germany has opened a floodgate that could see the EU countries at logger heads, not now but in the future. I also worry there will be a rise of the far right and Europe is bounced into a place none of us want to return to.

British citizenship is not automatically granted to children born in the UK. It depends on their parents' status - whether themselves British citizens, whether they are legally settled, whether they are married and so on.

Oh, OK, Tresco, thanks for the information.

I don't care if the 2 that were killed by a drone were innocent. They scuttled off like the sewer rats they are to join an organisation that means harm to me and mine. Nothing to discuss.

Thy why bother to discuss it Petra

My sentiments entirely, Petra. I expect we'll be branded racists but I'm getting used to that.

Where is the racist connection absent

Of course welcoming refugees will create problems....but problems that we will have to get a grip on. The alternative is to turn a blind eye - is that a viable option? Are there Gransnetters who would be happy to so that?

The US is peopled with immigrants; as is the UK - we are a mongrel race. Immigration and integration is the story of mankind.

Do people really think that the refugees are aiming to infiltrate the west with terrorists?