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| Government seeking ways to give local people priority in social housing | Government seeking ways to give local people priority in social housing |
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| The government is examining how to tighten rules to ensure that local people are given priority access to social housing as part of a range of measures to discourage Romanians and Bulgarians from coming to Britain from next year, when EU restrictions are lifted. | The government is examining how to tighten rules to ensure that local people are given priority access to social housing as part of a range of measures to discourage Romanians and Bulgarians from coming to Britain from next year, when EU restrictions are lifted. |
| As William Hague said the government wanted to remove any "perverse incentives" that encourage people to come to Britain, Downing Street said ministers were looking at "different types of policies and tools" to ensure that people with local connections are given priority on housing. | |
| The prime minister's spokesman confirmed the government would soon publish a range of options to tighten up on benefits and access to housing when Romanians and Bulgarians are given full rights to settle in the UK from next January. | The prime minister's spokesman confirmed the government would soon publish a range of options to tighten up on benefits and access to housing when Romanians and Bulgarians are given full rights to settle in the UK from next January. |
| Citizens from the two countries have been free to travel to the UK since Romania and Bulgaria joined the EU in 2007, though "transitional controls" on the right to work were imposed for the first seven years of EU membership. | Citizens from the two countries have been free to travel to the UK since Romania and Bulgaria joined the EU in 2007, though "transitional controls" on the right to work were imposed for the first seven years of EU membership. |
| The government is examining a range of measures to ensure that Romanians and Bulgarians do not travel to the UK to exploit British benefits from next year. These include: | The government is examining a range of measures to ensure that Romanians and Bulgarians do not travel to the UK to exploit British benefits from next year. These include: |
| • Urging councils to make greater use of existing powers – and possibly introduce new rules – to ensure that local people are given priority on housing. | • Urging councils to make greater use of existing powers – and possibly introduce new rules – to ensure that local people are given priority on housing. |
| Eric Pickles, the communities secretary, told the BBC: "We've been urging local authorities to give priority to people coming out of the armed forces. It does seem to me to be immensely sensible to ensure that if you work in an area or you've got a big connection – you might have been educated there or your family might be nearby – to receive some kind of priority in social housing." | Eric Pickles, the communities secretary, told the BBC: "We've been urging local authorities to give priority to people coming out of the armed forces. It does seem to me to be immensely sensible to ensure that if you work in an area or you've got a big connection – you might have been educated there or your family might be nearby – to receive some kind of priority in social housing." |
| The prime minister's spokesman said: "There is some scope but there may be opportunity to provide further clarification or reassurance on that specific area and that is being considered. There is a process of discussion and consideration of what can be done. There will be consideration to different types of policies and tools depending on which specific areas there are. On the [housing] point there is some scope in that direction already but you would expect us to see whether or not there is more that can be done there." | The prime minister's spokesman said: "There is some scope but there may be opportunity to provide further clarification or reassurance on that specific area and that is being considered. There is a process of discussion and consideration of what can be done. There will be consideration to different types of policies and tools depending on which specific areas there are. On the [housing] point there is some scope in that direction already but you would expect us to see whether or not there is more that can be done there." |
| • Limiting access to some benefits to those who have made contributions in a move that would block anyone who has just arrived in the UK. | |
| • Enforcing rules which say that access to the NHS should be granted only to those who pass the "habitual residence" test by living in the UK on a "habitual basis". At the moment all citizens of the European Economic Area (EEA), which comprises the EU plus Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein, pass the test. | |
| Downing Street confirmed that a cabinet subcommittee chaired by the prime minister that is working on the issue had concluded that any restrictions would have to apply to British citizens. | |
| The spokesman said: "We have to operate within the law, including EU single market law. It is my understanding one can't discriminate between EU nationalities within the law. There are things like habitual residency tests." | The spokesman said: "We have to operate within the law, including EU single market law. It is my understanding one can't discriminate between EU nationalities within the law. There are things like habitual residency tests." |
| William Hague, the foreign secretary, told The Andrew Marr Show on BBC1 on Sunday: "It's important there aren't artificial perverse incentives for people to come. We are looking in government at what more we can do to make sure that it is controlled, that that is fair across Europe. And I think people would expect us to do that. That's absolutely right." | William Hague, the foreign secretary, told The Andrew Marr Show on BBC1 on Sunday: "It's important there aren't artificial perverse incentives for people to come. We are looking in government at what more we can do to make sure that it is controlled, that that is fair across Europe. And I think people would expect us to do that. That's absolutely right." |