Immigration Up 11 Percent In The First Half Of 2013

As expected, immigration into Germany was up significantly in the first six months of 2013, according to destatis. I have written about this new issue and had this to say:

Germany has changed its tactics. Beggar thy neighbor to solve domestic economic issues is dead. Long live beggar thy neighbor to solve demographic problems. Merkel  herself stated on the issue of labor mobility within the EU(my translation):

We have to be open for young people who come to us, since we already know today that we will have six million less workers by 2025. 

So, is it working?

Demographic Change, Reforms, and the Commission

Olli Rehn recently reiterated his sustainable growth for Europe story. I have shown that Greece has lost more than "just" a decade and talked about how the the secondary effects are now coming back to haunt us, among other things. Let's today address something else. Almost two months ago Mr. Rehn said at the European Forum in Alpbach:

This is not just to combat the current crisis! In the coming decade, a major drag on growth will be the decline in the working-age population in Europr[sic]. Reforms are important not only to overcome the current crisis but also to address the long-term demographic change.

 (emphasis added)
It's fascinating how this person can easily switch from very short term - look at this one not completely awful quarter: it proves that we are doing everything right, never mind the disaster we have caused since 2010 - to long term demographics. I strongly believe that anything Mr: Rehn says has to be taken with a lethal dose of salt. Here's why that is also very true for the demographic situation.