British prime minister David Cameron has announced tighter controls at all major routes of entry to the United Kingdom in order to tackle high levels of immigration.
In a major speech to a Conservative Party meeting, Mr Cameron said his aim was to bring immigration down from hundreds of thousands to tens of thousands.
He said the emphasis would be on "good immigration" rather than mass immigration.
The BBC reports that the prime minister said the new controls on migration would be initiated alongside reforms, because the current system means immigrants can gain entry to the UK and then claim benefits.
The speech has been criticised by the Conservative's Liberal Democrat partner in the coalition government.
Liberal Democrat cabinet minister Vince Cable said the prime minister had been "very unwise" and that Mr Cameron's immigration targets were Conservative - not coalition government - policy.
He said the speech risked inflaming extremism.
Mr Cameron dismissed Mr Cable's criticism saying the words had been "measured".
