A dangerous UK consensus on free movement of workers in the EU

The UK government’s competence review – which will form the backbone of the renegotiation of the UK relationship with the EU that the Tory party wants to achieve – has not been completed. Yet there are no prizes for guessing one of the targets in its sights: freedom of movement of workers. The UK government has become hot and bothered about the potential influx of EU citizens from Bulgaria and Romania, owing to the realisation that it can no longer block their freedom to work in the UK once the transitional period set by the Treaty expires on 1 January 2014.

It appears that with the current high levels of unemployment, the blame being put on the euro zone for the continuing economic crisis, and the proposed renegotiation and referendum on EU membership, a perfect storm has brought immigration back to the top of the UK debate, with freedom of movement for EU workers in the firing line. This was seen most clearly in the Eastleigh by-election campaign, which featured an aggressive UKIP campaign on immigration: and an aping of it by the Tories.