BBC World Service Europe and the Middle East

In the Balance

Discussion & Talk

Factual: Money

The biggest financial stories and why they matter to us all.

In the Balance: Economics Without Borders?

Economics...without borders?

19/09/2015 GMT

Economics Without Borders?

BBC World Service - In the Balance, Economics Without Borders?

Are EU countries right not to let refugees in, or are they missing an economic trick?

Are there good economic reasons for EU nations to take in refugees? Or, are EU countries such as Hungary and Poland right to resist mass refugee migration into their economies?

Are EU countries such as Hungary and Poland right to resist mass refugee migration into their economies or are they missing a trick? We hear from the former Finance Minister of Poland Jacek Rostowski about why he thinks taking in large numbers of refugees is not a good option for his country. Meanwhile professor Alexander Betts, of the Refugee Studies Centre in Oxford, tells us his research shows that if refugees are allowed to work, they can make a huge positive contribution to the economy into which they settle. They are joined by former economic adviser to the US government Diana Furchtgott-Roth and Tania Kaiser of School of Oriental and African Studies to discuss the economic pros and cons of allowing refugees in. 

(Photo: Migrants and refugees wait to cross the Greece-Macedonia border, 13 September 2015. Credit: AFP/Getty Images)

BBC World Service

BBC World Service West and Central Africa Schedule

BBC World Service West and Central Africa

BBC World Service East and Southern Africa Schedule

BBC World Service East and Southern Africa

BBC World Service Australasia

BBC World Service Online

BBC World Service South Asia

BBC World Service East Asia

BBC World Service schedule for American satellite radio and the Caribbean

Accessibility links

Programme Index

In the Balance

Economics Without Borders?

Genres

Formats

Brand

BBC World Service Europe and the Middle East

About BBC World Service