BRITAIN should keep control of economic migrant policy and resist any plan to give Brussels new powers, according to a House of Lords report out today.

The European Union committee concludes that centralising control could not reflect an EU where Britain has a 4.6 per cent unemployment rate against 9.8 per cent in Germany and France.

The committee, which was asked to look at the role of the EU in managing economic migration, says that there would be difficulties in agreeing a common policy. The report says: “Economic migration is essential to the economies of the member states and the EU as a whole, and is likely to be an increasing factor in their economic performance.”

The committee rejects calls from groups such as Migration Watch to set a ceiling on immigration, arguing that it would be impossible to enforce an arbitrary limit.

Lord Wright of Richmond, who chaired the inquiry, said: “There is an important role for the EU to play in ensuring a basic level of rights for migrant workers right across the EU. The EU must make sure that workers get a fair deal and are not exploited.”

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