Germanyyesterday announced new measures to stop EU citizens from abusing its social welfare system, reacting to what some politicians have labelled “poverty migration”.
Chancellor Angela Merkel´s conservative Bavarian allies the CSU especially have demanded that EU benefit cheats be expelled, using the slogan “those who lie, fly”.
Under the draft bill agreed by cabinet, EU citizens who fraudulently receive social benefits will be sent home and temporarily prohibited from re-entering Germany.
Citizens of other EU countries in Germany would also be expected to find work within six months of arriving, under the bill that must still be passed by parliament.
Foreign applicants for child benefits will meanwhile be given tax ID numbers to stop fraud, such as families drawing multiple allowances for a child.
Conservative Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere insisted Germany, Europe’s largest economy, was not limiting the free movement of people within the EU, a core principle of the 28-nation union. (more)
Read the whole story: http://www.thelocal.de/20140827/germany-to-lock-out-cheating-eu-migrants
Source: The Local - AFP - DPA