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(Picture: PA
The number of Romanians and Bulgarians working in Britain has fallen since visa restrictions were scrapped on 1 January, confounding predictions that the move would trigger a dramatic surge in new arrivals from the two countries.
The UK Independence Party, which has campaigned on forecasts of a rush of new arrivals, faced accusations of scaremongering following the publication of the official statistics.
Ukip predicted "the floodgates will open" and produced posters saying 29 million Romanians and Bulgarians would be allowed to come to Britain, while the pressure group Migration Watch forecast 50,000 arrivals per year from the two nations.
However, the Office for National Statistics reported yesterday that 140,000 Romanians and Bulgarians were in employment in the first three months of the year - a fall of 4,000 on the previous quarter when controls were still in place. The number marked an increase of 28,000 in the Romanian and Bulgarian workforce over the last 12 months.
Read Nigel Morris' full report here
Comment: Mark Steel - With no Bulgarians or Romanians, who can Ukip blame now?