Kristian Vigenin: The fears of influx of Bulgarians to the UK have been unjustified
14 January 2014 News
At this stage, the concerns about an influx of Bulgarians to the UK, after lifting the restrictions on access to the labor market, are not being confirmed. Such were the expectations of all serious analysts. This was said by Foreign Minister Kristian Vigenin in an interview for “12 +3” National Radio programme. He expressed hope that his visit to London, which starts Wednesday, will further contribute to alleviating concerns in Britain.During his visit, Minister Vigenin will hold meetings with ministers, committee chairs in the House of Lords and House of Commons.
"I hope that after the apparent failure of this campaign to intimidate British citizens with the immigrants from Eastern Europe, we will be able to start an active bilateral dialogue," Minister Vigenin said. "I expect an acknowledgment that the fears were not justified. Bulgarian citizens that are already in the UK should receive recognition for all they do, for their contribution to the British social security system," he added.
During his visit to London, Minister Kristian Vigenin will also meet with representatives of the Bulgarian community in the UK. "I would like to discuss with them how this campaign has affected them and what measures we can take to improve the image of Bulgaria," he explained.
Minister Vigenin also commented on the upcoming next EC report in January under the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism. According to him, a reasonable conversation is due both in Bulgaria and with the new Commission on the future of the monitoring mechanism. "This monitoring was not meant to last forever. There are certain parameters that had to be met, " the Minister said. According to him, if the mechanism has not achieved results for seven years now, perhaps the monitoring process itself is not being successful, and moreover, criticisms should not be aimed exclusively at Bulgaria and Romania.
According to Kristian Vigenin, the idea of removing this type of monitoring and implementing a different one for all EU members should be considered. "I believe that the equal treatment will provide us with a better opportunity to compare ourselves with the other member states," he pointed out.