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The Guardian: Romanian officials voice concerns over anti-immigrant feeling to Nick Clegg

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Români în Marea Britanie ✍ Romanians in Great Britain

14 iunie 2013

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Senator Crin Antonescu says he is sad to hear such rhetoric in UK, citing huge benefits Romanians make to the country

Antonescu said Romanian immigrants were not all criminals and scroungers as ‘caricatured by Mr Farage and his ilk’. Photograph: Hugo Michiels/Demotix/Corbis

Senior Romanian politicians have voiced concerns to Nick Clegg over growing negative sentiment against their countrymen in the UK, ahead of the lifting of labour market restrictions in January.

Crin Antonescu, president of the Romanian senate, urged Clegg at a meeting on Thursday to challenge "unapologetic populists" on immigration and tackle discrimination against Romanians already living in Britain.

"The majority of the 100,000 Romanians living in the UK came here to work," said Antonescu. "Eighty-five per cent, the highest from any nationality, are in full-time employment. Most are under 35. Almost 40% have a university degree. There are over 4,000 doctors and nurses working in the NHS," said Antonescu.