The Labour Market Effects of Immigration

This briefing discusses the impacts of immigration on the labour market in the UK, focusing on wages and employment

Top Ten Problems in the Evidence Base for Public Debate and Policy-Making on Immigration in the UK

This report sets out the ten most important problems in the evidence base on immigration and migrants in the UK

Erioderma pedicellatum : an ecophysiological study of a globally threatened pioneer lichen on thin spruce branches in old forests

Lichen extinction occurs at a fast rate due to human activity, and species yet to be discovered are likely go extinct every year. Many species close to extinction may still be rescued by conservation management based on an understanding of species-specific habitat requirements and physiological responses. Erioderma pedicellatum is close to extinction and only known at a few sites world-wide. To prevent this species from going extinct, we need to know its ecophysiological responses and why it is rare. At its last remaining site in Europe, Tegningfallet in Norway, a spatially restricted population of 1500-2000 thalli dominate the epiphytic vegetation in a few Picea abies trees in a canyon with a waterfall. Microclimatic conditions at the site show that E. pedicellatum demands high-light conditions in combination with high relative humidity and relatively cool temperatures. It further requires unusually high pH branches of Picea abies. Erioderma pedicellatum has a high CO2 and O2-uptake under suitable conditions, experiences suprasaturation depression of photosynthesis at high water contents, and its growth rate was reduced with increasing thallus size. Too humid conditions appeared harmful for the species. Erioderma pedicellatum tolerates desiccation in combination with light well, but the population at Tegningfallet is shaded from direct sun light during the entire winter. Optimum temperature range for photosynthesis occurred at 10-15 °C, temperatures ≥25 °C significantly reduced carbon gain. Morphology and functional hydration traits significantly differed between the Tegningfallet and Newfoundland populations, in line with the different hydration sources in these two habitats. Understanding why and how E. pedicellatum can exist at a site such as Tegningfallet is essential for understanding how we can prevent this species from going extinct, and the presented results should encourage new management action plans and further research at the other remaining sites of the species. Methods used in this thesis could also be applicable for ecological understanding of other lichen species at risk of extinction.M-N

Migrant rights, immigration policy and human development

This paper explores the potential impacts of the rights of migrant workers (“migrant rights”) on the human development of actual and potential migrants, their families, and other people in migrants’ countries of origin. A key feature of the paper is its consideration of how migrant rights affect both the capability to move and work in higher income countries (i.e. the access of workers in low-income countries to labour markets of higher-income countries) and capabilities while living and working abroad. The paper suggests that there may be a trade-off between the number and some of the rights of low-skilled migrants admitted to high-income countries and explores the implications for human development.Migrant rights, immigration policy, human development, global labor markets

Migrant Rights, Immigration Policy and Human Development

This paper explores the potential impacts of the rights of migrant workers (“migrant rights”) on the human development of actual and potential migrants, their families, and other people in migrants’ countries of origin. A key feature of the paper is its consideration of how migrant rights affect both the capability to move and work in higher income countries (i.e. the access of workers in low-income countries to labour markets of higher-income countries) and capabilities while living and working abroad. The paper suggests that there may be a trade-off between the number and some of the rights of low-skilled migrants admitted to high-income countries and explores the implications for human development.Migrant rights, immigration policy, human development, global labor markets

The fundamental rights of irregular migrant workers in the EU : understanding and reducing protection gaps

Published: July 2022This study, commissioned by the European Parliament’s Policy Department for Citizens’ Rights and Constitutional Affairs at the request of the LIBE Committee, aims to inform policy debates about how to protect more effectively the fundamental rights of irregular migrant workers in the EU. It analyses the nature and causes of the gaps between the fundamental rights protections enshrined in EU legal standards and the rights realised by irregular migrants working in EU Member States in practice, and it discusses strategies for how these ‘protection gaps’ can be reduced

Rethinking EU migration and asylum policies: Managing immigration jointly with countries of origin and transit. Stiftung MEDAM Assessment Report on Asylum and Migration Policies in Europe 2019 Mercator Dialogue on Asylum and Migration (MEDAM)

The arrival of more than one million asylum seekers in Europe in 2015 exposed serious flaws in the EU’s asylum system. While the inflow of irregular migrants has long subsided, the political landscape and public debate in Europe have been fundamentally and permanently altered. Multiple efforts over the years to reform the European asylum system and to make it resilient to possible future surges in refugee movements have reached an impasse. Since early 2016, the EU has implemented far-reaching agreements with neighboring countries to curb irregular immigration, including the EU-Turkey understanding, the closure of the Western Balkans migration route, and support for search and rescue operations by the Libyan coast guard and the return to Libya of individuals rescued at sea. However, the EU and its member states have not used the respite offered by fewer irregular migrants arriving in Europe to address important shortcomings: key provisions of the EU-Turkey agreement are not functional, especially for the return of migrants from the Greek islands to Turkey; asylum systems in Western Balkan countries are underdeveloped and would be overwhelmed quickly if migrant flows were to resurge; and the human rights of migrants in Libya are routinely violated

Rethinking labour migration:Covid-19, essential work, and systemic resilience

Published online: 30 September 2021Many of the ‘essential workers’ during the Covid-19 pandemic are migrants, playing an important role for the continued functioning of basic services – notably health services, social care, and food supply chains. We argue that this role should be taken into account when assessing the impacts of migrant workers and in the design of labour migration and related public policies. Existing studies highlight how the employment of migrant workers in essential services is shaped by interests of employers, sectoral policies, and national institutions. Considerations of how migrants may affect the systemic resilience of essential services – in a pandemic or similar crises – are pervasively absent, not only in policy-making but also in research. Drawing on several disciplines, we outline the concept of systemic resilience and develop implications for the analysis and regulation of labour migration. We call for shifting the focus from the role of migrants in specific occupations and sectors in particular countries to transnational systems of production and service provision. To study how migrant workers affect systemic resilience, we propose an agenda for comparative research along three lines: comparing migrants to citizens within the same system, comparing migrants’ roles across systems, and comparing strategies for resilience adopted in different systems

Migrant rights, immigration policy and human development

This paper explores the potential impacts of the rights of migrant workers (“migrant rights”) on the human development of actual and potential migrants, their families, and other people in migrants’ countries of origin. A key feature of the paper is its consideration of how migrant rights affect both the capability to move and work in higher income countries (i.e. the access of workers in low-income countries to labour markets of higher-income countries) and capabilities while living and working abroad. The paper suggests that there may be a trade-off between the number and some of the rights of low-skilled migrants admitted to high-income countries and explores the implications for human development