A senior Labour Minister has said new immigrants should be banned from claiming benefitsCulture Minister Margaret Hodge claims the needs of those who have lived in Britain longer should come first, with immigrants having to 'earn' benefits."In the same way that we feel comfortable in talking about cracking down on people playing the system, we should also feel comfortable in talking about prioritizing the needs of people who have lived in an area all of their lives," she said.
"At the moment we have the worst of both worlds.
"The issue is so controversial that we avoid talking about it or attack those who do.
"Because there is no good hard data on what actually happens, we are left with anecdotal evidence indicating there is a problem."
The MP for Barking and Dagenham spoke out as she prepares to battle BNP leader Nick Griffin in the general election.
Writing in the Daily Mail, she said politicians need to be braver about discussing controversial issues to combat the rising popularity of the nationalist party.
"People believe rightly or wrongly that others are getting the housing before they do," she said.
"The result is people feel resentful about what they see as an injustice in the system and the BNP and other right wing parties seek to turn this resentment into popular support for them.
"The very mention of the word immigration causes controversy and the whole debate is often seen through the prism of racism.
"The result is parties like the BNP tap into people's frustrations and that's why we've seen a rise in support for them.
"It's not because people like what the BNP stand for, in fact people are repulsed by Nick Griffin's views on the Holocaust and his sympathy with the Nazis."
Ms Hodge said her constituents in Barking and Dagenham have legitimate concerns about the strain that a population swelled by immigration puts on jobs and services.
Her solution is a point system based on length of residence, citizenship or national insurance contributions.
"This isn't about race, it's about having a transparent system which people understand and which is fair," she said.
The minister stressed that she was not referring to the treatment of refugees who come to the country to escape persecution.
