Immigration good and bad

Thousands of migrants who had moved to New Zealand on the promise of permanent work and residency visas were being told to bugger off

A COUPLE of immigration stories in the press for you today.

The first slipped through the net on the weekend but is important for potential migrants. It's not good news, but is does reflect the anecdotal situation here in NZ, and plenty of people are getting cross with the New Zealand Immigration service.

Mike Bell, a spokesman for the Move 2 New Zealand Trust (Move2nz), representing mainly migrants from Britain, Europe and South Africa, says migrants not only bring skills and experience to New Zealand, but contribute $8 billion annually to the economy, reports the Heral under an eye catching headline: "Immigrants deceived."

Bell said thousands of migrants who had moved to New Zealand on the promise of permanent work and residency visas were being told to "bugger off".

Mmove2nz runs the Skilled Migrant Information and Resource Centre (SMIRC) in Christchurch; a free walk-in centre open through the week for families coming from other countries to live in New Zealand.

In another story from The Press, more heart warming this time, a terminally ill Christchurh woman will be reunited with her family because of a medical waiver allowing them to move to New Zealand despite recent health problems of their own.

Associate Immigration Minister Kate Wilkinson had issued a medical waiver, after reviewing her case. This means her history of cancer will not get in the way of her application, although she will have to meet all other criteria.

Comments

[Alan]

The thing that concerns me about the Herald article is the shot across the bows of SMIRC. Immigration are clearly flexing their muscle, and not in a way that helps migrants - irrespective of whether they are on work or residency visas