Top foreign footballers could be banned from the UK

Gordon Brown is at it again!

Football stars such as Ronaldinho and Lionel Messi could be refused entry to Britain under a new points system aimed at cutting 20,000 immigrants a year.

Unless footballers such as Brazilian Ronaldinho and Argentine Lionel Messi can prove they speak good English and no one else in the country can do a similar job, they could be barred entry.

Ministers have decided sportsmen and women should not get special treatment under the new rules.

It could spell the end of the invasion of extravagantly-paid sportsmen from South America and elsewhere.

Even in cases where foreign athletes do meet the criteria - speaking English, finding a willing employer and having enough cash to support themselves - they must secure approval from the sport's governing body.

It means that, in theory, the FA could block the entry of foreign players to prevent young British talent being forced out of the game.

Cricket, which imports many talented Indian, Pakistani and Sri Lankan players, and rugby will also feel the force of the new rules.

Immigration Minister Liam Byrne announced the scheme yesterday but opponents said it will have only a limited impact on the annual influx of 450,000 foreigners allowed to stay for 12 months or more.

The restrictions on non-EU workers are part of a long-promised Australian-style points-based system, which replaces the old work permits regime.

It is supposed to ensure only those with skills the country needs are allowed in, amid growing alarm at the pressure migrants are placing on schools, hospitals and other public services.

From the autumn, firms must show they cannot find British workers to do skilled posts, such as those taken by teachers, nurses and engineers.

Would-be immigrants will have to show they speak good English and earn over £24,000, or are well qualified.

Mr Byrne said: "Our new points system means that British jobseekers get the first crack of the whip and that only the skilled migrants we actually need will be able to come."

He said that, for the first time, all skilled jobs must be advertised in a jobcentre before they can be handed to a non-EU migrant.

But, at the same time, officials admitted a "significant reduction" in the length of time a job must be made available in Britain before being offered to someone from overseas.

It is currently four weeks but will be slashed to two weeks in most cases - or one week if the job pays over £40,000.

Mr Byrne resisted demands to fix an upper limit on migrant numbers. He said the Government needed to maintain the flexibility to increase and decrease the numbers arriving year by year.

A points-based system was the easiest way to move to achieve this, he claimed.

The rules will apply only to non-EU citizens.

Last year, there were 452,000 arrivals from overseas. Of these, 136,000 were EU citizens, who the Government has no power to control because of rules on free movement. But the rest can be subject to immigration controls.

Tory immigration spokesman Damian Green said: "The Government have unwittingly admitted that Conservative policy is the answer.

"The only new aspect to this reheated announcement is the number by which the Government said work permits would be cut.

"This is at last an admission that it is possible to have an overall limit on numbers - something that we have been proposing but which the Government have said would not work."

Sir Andrew Green, chairman of Migrationwatch UK, said the claim the points system will result in lower levels of immigration is "pure spin".

He added: "The scheme has no limits and, in fact, will probably result in even higher levels of immigration.

"It is so complex and bureaucratic, with potentially 26,000 job titles, that it is highly likely to lead to chaos and confusion, increasing the scope for abuse."

Erm.  Well...

Thoughts any one?

Bah! Fifa could step in couldnt they?

Its just another complication to the game. If Set "fats" Blatter has his way it wont mean anything anyway as he has his heart set on this 5 or 6 player rule for overseas players. This in turn will lead clubs looking more inward, which in turn is better for the game on a national level in this country, especially when coming from grass roots level.

Looking at the situation the government is in at the minute I would take any extravagant announcement like this one with a pinch of salt.  Present or future Immigration laws decide in the House of Commons would have to be "satisfied" with the European Parliament anyway( 78 English MEP's)...remember these so called "red lines" preventing referendum about amendments of the European (no called) Constitution? The Treaty of Lisbon, signed on Dec 2007, largely retains the reforms outlined in the rejected Constitutional Treaty

 Blater been the latest to feels the power of the European Parliament with his proposals to limit the number of foreign players in the English Premier League, Blater was and is not supported by European football's governing body UEFA and European Union lawmakers, who say it would be illegal to prevent the free movement of players.

 I believe The European Parliament on Thursday called on governments and sports associations to bloc FIFA plans aimed at promoting the use of home-grown players by football clubs. In a report approved by the assembly, MEPs said FIFA's so-called 6+5 rule would discriminate players on the basis of their nationality....end off Blater.