Gordon Brown talks about immigration, in Shoreditch Town Hall

Immigration contributes positively to the British economy, Gordon Brown stressed on a visit to the East End yesterday.

Speaking at Shoreditch Town Hall on Wednesday, the Prime Minister defended  the points-based system, which he said was used “to control immigration and fill the skills gaps we have in our economy”.

The report from the Hackney Citizen says the Prime Minister condemned ‘scaremongering’ and misrepresentation of the migration figures. He said we should bear in mind that “migration within the European Union is a two-way street”, with around a million Britons living in and working in the EU.

Mr Brown rejected the idea of putting temporary restrictions on Eastern Europeans, saying they contribute to the British economy and are “50 per cent less likely to receive benefits or tax benefits” than Britons. He also stated that the cost of asylum support to the tax payer in the last six years has halved.

He said net migration had fallen and rejected Conservative proposals for a quota system.