- 11 Mar 2013 19:28
#14191107
How to lose business and alienate potential trade partners
Mar 9th 2013 | SÃO PAULO |From the print edition
http://www.economist.com/news/britain/21573128-how-lose-business-and-alienate-potential-trade-partners-no-entry
LAST September David Cameron headed to Brazil with his trade minister and dozens of businessmen. “This visit is about British jobs, British growth and the British economy,” said the prime minister. In October it was British universities’ turn, with student fairs in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. Britain’s diplomatic service is scaling back elsewhere, but Brazil has got extra staff and “prosperity officers” whose brief is to strengthen business ties, thus boosting growth.
They have their work cut out. A Conservative pre-election pledge to cut net immigration to under 100,000 a year is putting the home secretary, Theresa May, who must try to keep the promise, at odds with colleagues more concerned with Britain’s ailing economy. Whether she wins or loses, each public row further damages Britain’s standing abroad.
First came last year’s decision by the Home Office to remove London Metropolitan University’s licence to sponsor visas for overseas students. In Brazil and elsewhere, local media depicted youngsters distraught about lost rent and tuition fees and unfinished degrees. Some were later granted a reprieve. But by then bright young things around the world had crossed British universities off their lists. The number of overseas students in Britain has since fallen by a fifth.
Then came reports of a move against Brazilians. On March 5th Mrs May told colleagues she wanted to end the visa exemption for Brazilian tourists, quite a few of whom overstay. They quickly nixed the idea, for the time being at least. But a report in the Financial Times had already created another public-relations disaster for Britain in Brazil. “Remember this name: Theresa May. British minister. Wants to make Brazilian tourists’ lives hell,” tweeted Sergio Leo, a newspaper columnist.
While Britain ponders a Não Entre sign, other countries are tearing theirs down. Brazilian tourists in America come in such numbers and spend so freely that the US Travel Association, a lobby group, dubs them “walking stimulus packages”. Visiting Brazil last year, Barack Obama held out hope they would soon be able to enter America visa-free. Since then, waiting times for Brazilians seeking American visas have fallen from months to days. Australia and Canada have simplified visa-processing too.
Brazil’s own immigration policy is a tit-for-tat affair. It requires visas for tourists from countries that require them from Brazilians. Last year its border officials started to ask Spanish tourists to prove they had sufficient funds and somewhere to stay, in retaliation for Spain doing the same to Brazilians. After dozens of Spaniards were refused entry, Spain had a change of heart.
And Brazil is prickly about perceived slights to its new status as an economic superpower. Most Brazilian officials and businessmen see stronger links between the two countries as offering greater gains to Britain. If Mrs May keeps pushing, they will shrug and let her throw those benefits away.
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I think the UK is not being very smart here. Brazilians hardly emigrate to other countries (only 1% of the population lives abroad), and when they do, they tend to go to the US and the Brazilian Nisei go to Japan. Not to foggy UK. Brazilian immigration to the UK is irrelevant. If the British keep pushing an anti-Brazil agenda, we will see Brazilian officials talking more and more about the Falklands' issue and siding with Argentina, what is not good for British interests in the region.
UK exports to Brazil grew 32% since 2010 and total trade between the two countries is expected to double by 2015. Brazil can help the UK to get out from the economic crisis. And it seems that David Cameron was aware of that at least until last September. Theresa May's fear is irrational and stupid. A rich tourist overstaying his visa is kind of different from a poor immigrant illegally living in the UK.
Mar 9th 2013 | SÃO PAULO |From the print edition
http://www.economist.com/news/britain/21573128-how-lose-business-and-alienate-potential-trade-partners-no-entry
LAST September David Cameron headed to Brazil with his trade minister and dozens of businessmen. “This visit is about British jobs, British growth and the British economy,” said the prime minister. In October it was British universities’ turn, with student fairs in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. Britain’s diplomatic service is scaling back elsewhere, but Brazil has got extra staff and “prosperity officers” whose brief is to strengthen business ties, thus boosting growth.
They have their work cut out. A Conservative pre-election pledge to cut net immigration to under 100,000 a year is putting the home secretary, Theresa May, who must try to keep the promise, at odds with colleagues more concerned with Britain’s ailing economy. Whether she wins or loses, each public row further damages Britain’s standing abroad.
First came last year’s decision by the Home Office to remove London Metropolitan University’s licence to sponsor visas for overseas students. In Brazil and elsewhere, local media depicted youngsters distraught about lost rent and tuition fees and unfinished degrees. Some were later granted a reprieve. But by then bright young things around the world had crossed British universities off their lists. The number of overseas students in Britain has since fallen by a fifth.
Then came reports of a move against Brazilians. On March 5th Mrs May told colleagues she wanted to end the visa exemption for Brazilian tourists, quite a few of whom overstay. They quickly nixed the idea, for the time being at least. But a report in the Financial Times had already created another public-relations disaster for Britain in Brazil. “Remember this name: Theresa May. British minister. Wants to make Brazilian tourists’ lives hell,” tweeted Sergio Leo, a newspaper columnist.
While Britain ponders a Não Entre sign, other countries are tearing theirs down. Brazilian tourists in America come in such numbers and spend so freely that the US Travel Association, a lobby group, dubs them “walking stimulus packages”. Visiting Brazil last year, Barack Obama held out hope they would soon be able to enter America visa-free. Since then, waiting times for Brazilians seeking American visas have fallen from months to days. Australia and Canada have simplified visa-processing too.
Brazil’s own immigration policy is a tit-for-tat affair. It requires visas for tourists from countries that require them from Brazilians. Last year its border officials started to ask Spanish tourists to prove they had sufficient funds and somewhere to stay, in retaliation for Spain doing the same to Brazilians. After dozens of Spaniards were refused entry, Spain had a change of heart.
And Brazil is prickly about perceived slights to its new status as an economic superpower. Most Brazilian officials and businessmen see stronger links between the two countries as offering greater gains to Britain. If Mrs May keeps pushing, they will shrug and let her throw those benefits away.
_______
I think the UK is not being very smart here. Brazilians hardly emigrate to other countries (only 1% of the population lives abroad), and when they do, they tend to go to the US and the Brazilian Nisei go to Japan. Not to foggy UK. Brazilian immigration to the UK is irrelevant. If the British keep pushing an anti-Brazil agenda, we will see Brazilian officials talking more and more about the Falklands' issue and siding with Argentina, what is not good for British interests in the region.
UK exports to Brazil grew 32% since 2010 and total trade between the two countries is expected to double by 2015. Brazil can help the UK to get out from the economic crisis. And it seems that David Cameron was aware of that at least until last September. Theresa May's fear is irrational and stupid. A rich tourist overstaying his visa is kind of different from a poor immigrant illegally living in the UK.
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