Mike O'Brien
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mikeobrien.bsky.social
Mike O'Brien
@mikeobrien.bsky.social
74 followers 320 following 48 posts
Retired civil servant; trustee at Cambridge Film Trust; photographer; writer; lapsed amateur musician
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Reposted by Mike O'Brien
13sarahmurphy.bsky.social
Hey, look where years of scapegoating immigrants and devising punitive immigration policies gets you…
Further into debt, collapsing universities, tax rises and spending cuts.
Prejudice and govt dishonesty have high price tags.
Slow hand clap to all those responsible.
Public concern about immigration remains unusually high and has not yet caught up with the reality of falling immigration. However, by the 2029 general election there will have been several years of low net migration. A sharp fall in immigration could impact Reform UK, who are currently leading opinion polls, especially if asylum seeker numbers also fall. However, a fall in net migration of 300,000 a year would increase the deficit by about £2o billion. The government are already having to make unpopular tax rises and spending cuts in the upcoming budget, but would have to make more if the deficit increases. A fall in international student numbers will put further pressure on universities that are struggling financially, especially the 22 universities expected to lose their sponsor license. Reducing immigration will not necessarily increase the number of jobs available for British people as some employers are responding to tightening immigration rules by increasing outsourcing. Some job vacancies will become harder to fill, particularly in care homes. This will be even worse if a lot of people emigrate because they do not want to wait 10 years for ILR. Conclusion Net migration will fall very sharply in future years as a result of immigration restrictions brought in by both the current and the previous government. Furthermore, emigration will continue to increase, particularly of people with graduate visas. Any political benefit the government may gain from this fall in immigration could be jeopardised by the economic damage that it causes.
October 29, 2025 at 10:31 PM
Reposted by Mike O'Brien
iandunt.bsky.social
For there to be no comment from the government on Musk's call for violence, let alone action against X, is unconscionable. An utter dereliction of its responsibility for national security and an affront to every member of an ethnic minority, who is being put at risk by this rhetoric.
September 14, 2025 at 9:56 AM
Reposted by Mike O'Brien
13sarahmurphy.bsky.social
What do politicians go into public service for? You’d hope - to act responsibly in the best interests of the country. Not to live in fear of the Daily Mail having a wettie. Honest to god, if you don’t speak out now, what’s the fucking point of you?
The real business here is moral. It's about the soul of the fucking country. If Labour needed to take damage in order to stand up for basic decency - for the shred of civilization that marks us out from beasts - then I would expect to see them fucking do it without the need for a self-serving argument to justify it.
August 29, 2025 at 2:31 PM