Scaremongering

I have noticed that there have been stories in the News about the influx of immigrants that will come "flooding" into the country now restrictions have been lifted.
If you  believed some of the stories, we should be finding it difficult to walk around without bumping into a Romanian or a Bulgarian.
Have you fallen over vast swathes of the aforementioned people whenever you go out?  No, me neither.
For even one person to come over here, it means giving up the life they are used to, leaving their friends and extended family behind.  It means coming to a country where they more often than not, do not speak the language, do not know the ways and customs of the country.  They are giving up what might be a very poor living, but at least they are familiar with it and know what to expect, in the hope of having a better lifestyle in a country where they will have to make adaptations to their lifestyle to fit in.
With all that in mind, are we really going to be "flooded" with immigrants?
I seriously don't think so.  The people who come here will be determined to make a better life for themselves.  They'd have to be in order to give up everything that is familiar to them and start afresh.
One thing that the scaremongers have missed out on is....if these people can come here, then surely the reverse is true, and we could emigrate to another EU country.
Personally, I think the immigrants who come here to work are very brave to give up what they know in search of a better lifestyle. 
And as for them "taking our jobs".  That is a sweeping statement if ever I heard one.  Yes, the jobs are there, but they are often jobs that many of the UK unemployed think are beneath them, either in skill level or wage level.
There are quite a few Polish live near me, and many of the men are qualified engineers and electricians, but they are just doing any job rather than be jobless. 
So, my point here is....how willing would you be to give up everything you are familiar with, and move 100s or 1000s of miles from your home in search of a better life?
I know I wouldn't, unless I had someone very special in the new place.

Austerity measures aren’t working?

Austerity measures aren’t working?

Yes, that is the conclusion I found in an article I was reading today.  I wonder whose viewpoint they were viewing this from.

My wage was frozen three years ago, and although we have been told that we will get a wage rise this year, it has been limited to 1%, with a clause tying everyone into a limited wage rise for three further years.

This wage freeze and now very small wage rise has been worked out to be in effect a wage cut.  How is it a wage cut, I hear you ask?  Well, no one has put a price freeze on foods, energy, etc.  So consequently, even those who have had annual pay rises at the rate of inflation have less buying power, and disposable income than they had 3 years ago.  And people who have had a pay freeze are beginning to struggle.

The people who are saying that we are not under austerity measures, must be those who had plenty of money to start off with.

One price rise that might illustrate the squeeze the less well off are under is this, around 3 years ago you could buy three packets of standard own-brand pasta at Asda for £1.  Recently they have “price freezed” some prices, the same packs have been cut to 50p/pack. I think the highest was 69p for these packs. Therefore at 69p that is only one and a half packs per £1, and even with the “rollback” two for £1.  So your £1 buys you 33% less food. I don’t think this is across the board, but it is no wonder the “economy” supermarkets are becoming the most popular.  And if the wages ever become less regulated, I can’t see people going back to the dearer supermarkets.

Incidently, I had some of this discussion with my plumber, and the company he installs boilers for has given them a generous pay rise each year he has worked for them, without any negotiation.