A nod for immigration, or not?

That the world is fast becoming a global village and boundaries are being eliminated is what comes to mind when one glances at the census report of England and Wales.
The headline of an article on the subject in Financial Times, White Britons no longer a majority in London conveys a very important message - that of increasing immigration trends across the world. Migration was behind 60 percent of the growth witnessed in the population of England and Wales, i.e. 2.1 million people.
Needless to say, the British metropolitan has experienced quite a surge in immigrants in the last decade. "In London...more than one in three people - 37 percent -- were born outside the UK," said the article in FT.
And guess which country bagged the prize for being the country of last residence for most immigrants - India. Thats of little surprise given the countrys bustling population and an abundance of skilled labour in high-growth industries, such as IT.
The flow of skilled labour from developing countries is nothing new to the developed world. In the US alone, 11.6 million people the legal permanent resident status between 2001 and 2011.
Attitudes towards immigration amongst existing citizens of host countries generally seem antagonistic. People contend that the influx of immigrants creates greater competition for existing jobs, increasing chances of unemployment for non-immigrant citizens.
Besides the economic concern, social and cultural issues are also at the heart of the general negative sentiment about immigration in most host countries. The mingling of cultures, religions and ethnicity is argued by many to be leading to dwindling social homogeneity, and therefore greater social tensions.
However, as suggested by the growing immigrant population in England and in general across the world, there are advantages of bringing skilled labour from other countries. For example, it helps develop industries, which further generate jobs in the economy.
Besides, the effects on immigrants - for example, culture shocks - and on their home countries should also not be ignored.
All in all, the issue of immigration continues to be a heated one, with no single, objective answer to how right or wrong it is. Whats important is how boundaries across the globe are disappearing and how the concept of nationalities will evolve in times to come.