Blair Government Warned to Delay Employment Rights for EU Workers in 2004, Archives Reveal

Newly released files from the National Archives show that senior ministers urged then-Prime Minister Tony Blair to postpone granting immediate employment rights to workers from Eastern and Central Europe when the EU expanded in 2004. Foreign Secretary Jack Straw advocated for a six-month delay, warning of potential social and economic challenges. Despite this, the UK implemented a workers registration scheme, allowing citizens from countries like Poland to work in Britain from May 1, 2004.

The decision to grant immediate access to the labor market was unique among major EU nations, with most implementing restrictions for two years. Ministers were divided, with then-Home Secretary David Blunkett arguing for the economic benefits of the new workforce, while Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott expressed concerns over housing and overcrowding. The government faced criticism for underestimating the number of new arrivals, initially predicting only 13,000 per year, a figure quickly surpassed.

By late 2005, flaws in the registration system became evident, as it failed to accurately track self-employed workers, such as tradespeople. Over the next decade, the number of Polish nationals living in the UK surged to over 850,000, far exceeding early estimates. While many have since returned to Poland, the 2021 census reported a Polish-born population of 743,000 in Britain.

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