Express
December 31, 2013
Next week’s influx of eastern Europeans will stretch schools and hospitals to crisis point, a council leader warned last night.
As Britain prepares to open its doors to tens of thousands of Romanian and Bulgarian migrants, the leading Tory said further unrestricted immigration would create serious problems.
In words that will resonate with millions, Susan Hall, boss of Harrow Council in north-west London, admitted local authorities will find it difficult to cope.
Her sobering prediction came after a series of Daily Express reports from Romania where poor families have said they are planning to head to the UK after restrictions are lifted on January 1.
Ms Hall said: “What the Daily Express has found is a timely eye-opener about what may be heading to the shores of the UK in just a few days time.
“Councils simply can’t cope with an influx of immigrants which will strain our housing lists and distort school class sizes.
“What people are afraid of, I think understandably, is that the freedom to travel and find work within the EU is being translated into a free pass to try and tap up the UK’s generous benefits system. People who come to the UK to work and pay taxes are welcome.
“But the numbers we have seen in recent years are creating social problems of an entirely new order. Crime linked to east Europeans, ranging from prostitution to pickpocketing, is appearing in suburban areas like mine and residents are struggling to see that as a benefit of free travel within the EU.”