UK businesses warn against immigration caps

The UK government is caught in a dilemma over imposing a cap on the number of immigration of professionals from India and other non-EU countries, with several British companies asking ministers to reconsider the issue.

British companies have to hire foreign professionals with specialised skills for certain jobs in the IT and finance sectors since such professionals are not easily available in Britain and the EU.

The coalition government had promised a cap on immigration from non-EU nations as one its major policy initiatives.

In a new research it has been revealed that about one in 10 private sector companies plans to relocate jobs abroad in the next year, as, with the immigration cap coming into force from April 2011, it will not be possible for British companies to recruit foreign skilled professionals in the required numbers.

Also companies are looking at overseas recruitments with one in six saying they would bring in migrant workers.

Amid growing backlash against the government's controversial move, businesses warned yesterday that they would relocate jobs overseas including India, as a rigid immigration limit could end up creating shortages of skilled workers at home.