US President Donald Trump used his first State of the Union address to once again outline the importance of America adopting a merit-based immigration system.
The President used both Canada and Australia as examples of countries which operate a successful immigration system which benefits the country.
“A merit-based system would properly match the needs of the modern United States economy and protect vulnerable blue- collar American workers,” the White House said, a day after Trump in his first State of the Union address pushed for an immigration policy that attracts the best and the brightest to the US.
The White House said that a flood of low-skilled immigrants into the US has “suppressed wages, harmed American workers, and strained federal resources.”
According to a recent Harvard-Harris survey, 79 per cent of Americans polled believe that the immigration system should be merit-based.
Currently, between two-thirds and 70 per cent of legal immigration into the United States is based on family relations. According to the White House, between 2005 and 2015, the United States admitted 9.3 million immigrants based on family relations.
During his State of the Union address, President Trump also called for the ending of the visa lottery programme, which grants visas to residents of countries with low immigration rates.
Article published 1st February 2018