The Arrow
A new business, economic and financial supplement, from The Archer
Businessweek
Discover where Wales stands in the global economic stage today
By Coralie N'ch and Yunjie Zou
Many migrants are coming to Wales and this number should continue to grow in a difficult world economy leading people to leave their country in hope for a better life.
The past years have shown a significant increase of the number of immigrants in Wales particularly from the European Union countries.
This is mainly due to the enlargement of the European Union, on May 1, 2004 when it opened its frontiers to ten new members: Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Czech Republic, Cyprus and Malta.
In fact, in Wales and in the UK, the term “migrant worker” has gradually being used to refer to immigrants from Eastern Europe.
This enlargement granted a new degree of mobility to people moving out of these countries. Many migrant workers left these countries and came to Wales hoping for more job opportunities and better living conditions.
Apart from Cyprus and Malta, the other countries are referred to as ‘A8’, in regard of the low income levels – their income per capita is around 40 per cent of the European average.
There was a fear that inclusion of these countries would lead to migration on a massive scale, as their citizens sought to benefit from better wages available elsewhere within the European economic area.
Bulgaria and Romania also joined the EU in January 2007. But they are still subject to restrictions and the number of nationals of these countries applying to work in Wales is very low.
The number of economic migrants from the ‘A8’ countries in Wales is unclear and the figure is constantly changing. However, the number of migrant workers in many areas of Wales has been significantly underestimated.
According to the report “Statistics on Migrant Workers in Wales” produced by the Welsh Local Government Association, there were "16,200 registrations from A8 nationals to the Worker Registration Scheme in Wales between May 2004 and March 2007.
"Two third of application to the Worker Registration Scheme in Wales have been from Poland and a further 15 per cent from Slovakia."
Tatiana Fic, PhD at the National Institute of Economic said that Poland, Lithuania, Ireland and Italy were amongst the most represented countries in terms of immigration in the UK.
"For the Eastern European countries, then the factors are predominantly economic, both in terms of the GDP per capita level which are higher here as well as wages,” said Mrs Fic.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) states that in 2011 Poland was among the three countries most represented in Wales' non-UK residents, with India and Pakistan.
"Poland showed by far the largest percentage increase in the top ten countries of birth, with a nine-fold rise over the last decade and following its accession to the EU in 2004," states the ONS.
"The Polish-born population in England and Wales increased nine-fold between 2001 and 2011, more than any other country. The only country of birth to see a decline was the Republic of Ireland."
Figures from the ONS show that in July 2012, there were 94,000 UK residents from Romania and 47,000 from Bulgaria.
The ten countries most represented are compared on the graphic below which shows the proportion of non-UK born residents in England and Wales between 2001 and 2011. As mentioned, Poland is in the three first countries.
European immigrants who work in Wales
The Polish-born population in England and Wales increased nine-fold between 2001 and 2011, more than any other country.
The office for National Statistics
Ten countries of birth for non-UK born residents in England and Wales
Generally, the study is the main reason why people decide to migrate to the UK, followed by employment possibilities.
The number of resident migrant workers from ‘A8’ countries is higher in urban areas, according to the Wales Rural Observatory (WRO). This is mostly the case in Cardiff, Llanelli, Newport and Wrexham.
In the other part of the Europe, Spain also suffers from a very high rate of unemployment. It leads to an influx of Spanish people who seek more job opportunities in the UK, with a rising number in Wales.
Mrs Fic said: "For Spain,it has an increase from almost 67,000 in 2011 to 72,000 in 2012.
"As for the data for Germany, there is a decrease because in 2011 we had 128,000 people and in 2012 121,000 people. The conditions of these economies shows Germany is much better than Spain, and Germany's unemployment rate is 5-6 per cent which is really low.
“On the other hand if you look at Spain, the unemployment is high, particularly the youth unemployment. So if you look at employment opportunities in these countries, they differ and this may also have an impact on migration in the sense that if the situation in Spain is bad, then obviously more people will want to migrate somewhere else."
These European immigrants face several problems other than jobs hunting.They are especially a target group of race hate, which is being documented in some Wales areas. Beside, some of them might become unscrupulous employers or lost competitiveness due to the lack of language skills.
Regarding the impact on the economy, Mr Fic said that her organisation usually focuses on the receiving countries’ migration, which people are moving and settling down - and the sending countries - that is countries from which people are emigrating.
“The conclusion is that generally the receiving countries are benefiting from immigration in the sense that if you have more people, then you can produce more and this has a positive impact on GDP. But you could also argue that you have short term costs,” Mrs Fic said.
"If you look at descending countries, then what you see is that lower labor force has a negative impact on the productive capacity of these countries and in the long term the GDP of these countries goes down. A part of the labor force is leaving and nobody is replacing it,” she concluded.
Generally, migrant workers contribute more to the Welsh economy in taxes than what they receive in social benefit. Wales certainly benefits from the skills and contribution that migrant workers bring with them.
However, many consider that the amount of immigrants coming to the UK is too high and that it should be more regulated.
The anti-immigration UK Independence Party recently surged in local elections and had high results, showing a demand for change. This could have important impacts for people hoping to immigrate to Wales.
"Generally the receiving countries are benefiting from immigration in the sense that if you have more people, then you can produce more and this has a positive impact on GDP."
Tatiana Fic
European immigrants are looking for better life prospects in Wales