EU enlargement has not drawn tide of workers to UK

The addition of 10 new countries to the European Union two months ago has not led to an influx of people seeking work in the UK, a leading global employment agency said.

The results of a survey by the Manpower employment agency are likely to be used against critics of EU enlargement who claimed that Britain would be awash with foreigners trying to take jobs away from Britons. The survey of Manpower's 300 offices across the UK found that about half the branches saw an increase of less than 10 applicants seeking work in the first month after EU enlargement, on May 1.

Sixteen per cent of branches reported an increase of more than 20 applicants while 11 per cent reported no increase in jobseekers at all.

"Contrary to much speculation, Manpower believes it is unlikely that EU enlargement will result in a flood of migrant labour from the East to the West," the report said.

Britain is currently experiencing one of the tightest job markets in Europe, with unemployment at multi-decade lows and overall employment at record highs. Wage inflation has begun to pick up, in part because of a shortage of available workers.

Bank of England policymakers - who left interest rates unchanged at 4.50 per cent on yesterday but are likely to put them up again in August - have said they are watching wages data closely, making sure pay increases are not putting upward pressure on inflation.

Recent research from Manpower found that 22 per cent of 2,100 UK companies polled said that workers from new member states would help fill some of those skills gaps in the UK jobs market.