Indian migrants to take test in British way of life

LONDON: Indian and other foreign nationals seeking to settle in the UK will be required to take tests in the English language and the British way of life from Tuesday even as over 200,000 failed asylum seekers may stay on indefinitely because they were “untraceable”.

The government has introduced the tests to ensure that migrants wishing to live in the UK permanently should properly integrate and understand the society they are joining.

Meanwhile, officials said that nearly half of the 450,000 “legacy cases” in which the applicants are left in limbo may never be cleared. Ministers have ruled out amnesty and have pledged to remove everyone not entitled to be in the country within five years.

Some “legacy” cases date back 15 years and experts believe the government will not be able to fulfill its pledge to clear the backlog by July 2011. Officials attending a recent meeting to discuss the legacy policy were told that half of the 450,000 are “untraceable.”

They were also told that 18,000 foreign nationals who have committed crimes in Britain were earmarked for deportation. A Home Office spokesman said: “We remain confident that we will be able to clear the entire current legacy of cases by July 2011.”