Britain’s proposal for a migrant bond has been dismissed by Nigeria as a “blunt instrument” that will damage commercial ties. Lagos has threatened to impose similar barriers to Britons entering Nigeria, should it be enforced, according to the Financial Times of London.
A pilot scheme, announced over the weekend by Theresa May, the UK home secretary, would levy a £3,000 bond on short-term visitors from India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nigeria and Ghana, as part of Conservative efforts to bring down UK net migration to 100,000 by the next election.
After confusion over how the bond would work, the Home Office confirmed on Tuesday that it would not apply to all visitors from the selected countries, but just a few considered to be at particularly high risk of breaching their visas.
The scheme, which would involve forfeiture of the deposit, in the event of visitors overstaying, has run into fierce opposition from the countries targeted, amid signs the UK government is already thinking again.
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Nigeria’s economy and finance minister and a former managing director of the World Bank, said the proposals were anathema to the spirit of agreements between the two countries, aimed at boosting trade and investment.
“Frankly we are baffled by the whole thing. This is a very blunt instrument. It sends all the wrong signals about Britain’s openness for trade and tourism,” she told the Financial Times, saying she was sure every country targeted, had the “principles of reciprocity” in mind.
http://www.dailytimes.com.ng/article/nigeria-dismisses-uk-migrant-bond-proposal
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