Reflection

With just over 6 weeks until the general election the Guardian today have turned their newspaper over to the issues of immigration. How parties choose to deal with this will largely effect how well they do at the polls.

I have always believed that if a person from another country comes over to make an active contribution to British society then their life here should be secure. However it is already becoming a lot harder for some.

My friend Karl (who I had lunch with yesterday), recently married a Chinese woman (it is not her in the picture). She is highly qualified and has firm job offers in London. However, being married to a national and having work is not sufficient to get her a visa and she has been forced to return to China for 6 months until the paperwork is settled. The paperwork also includes the deposit of huge sums of money in an untouched bank account.

Some might argue that these obstacles will make their union stronger (and I'm sure it will) however it does seem inhumane to me.