I have been in a spectacularly cheerful mood ever since exams have ended. I have, however, been worrying about the proposed ConDemolition government immigration cap. It seemed highly possible that they would eliminate Tier IV conversion visas, which is the next one I need to get, and that I'd have to go back to America, which I really don't want to do. Yesterday afternoon I was in the highly surreal position of attending a party in Parliament while the debates about non-EU immigration were going on. There are little television screens in every room in Parliament, one green, one red, which tell you what's being debated in the Commons and Lords, respectively. The whole time I was there trying to overcome my shyness and talk to people I don't know in order to try to find a job, I would catch out of the corner of my eye that Theresa May was speaking and that seven minutes of the debate were left. It was unbelievable.
However, this morning, I read in the Guardian that students staying on to work after finishing a degree from a British university are exempt from the cap and that the old rules continue to apply! Thank God! I really don't know what I would have done otherwise.
So...let me get this straight. You've been in the country less than a year and you've already scored an invitation to Parliament. I've been here for 37 years and I've yet to get closer than the public gallery. Clearly I need to work on my networking skills. :o)
ReplyDeleteThe anti-immigrant stuff coming out of the government is infuriating me. It's so obviously a stunt decided to distract attention from the real causes of the problems we have. It's not as though it's something that's new to the coalition though - Labour were delighting in anti-immigrant rhetoric for years.
Anyway, i'm glad to hear you won't be having a problem. :o)
Well, I've been here off and on since 1995 (to be strictly accurate) but these invites are really due to the champagne-socialist university I go to. One of the current Labour leadership candidates is an alumnus and we've got a lot of would-be future Labour PMs/MPs/similar in the phil/econ/govt departments. I promise to stay here and use my networking powers for the good! Had a nice robust discussion yesterday about the Mental Health Act 2007 with the son of the MP who was in charge of it - have to start somewhere...
ReplyDeleteLabour may have spewed anti-immigrant rhetoric but they did at least lay out a clear, more or less transparent system. It is a system that made it really, really hard to immigrate from outside the EU but it is at least relatively fair in that if you qualify, you qualify. The ConDems - well, if you qualify, you might get a visa or not depending on arbitrary timing or not, maybe, but any kind of an actually clear or specific answer or process will not be given. They may well eliminate my next visa category for next year but at least they're not changing the rules in the middle of the game for me.
So glad I can stay, too! My networking connections in the US aren't nearly as good! Promise I'll pay my taxes in full and on time, too :)