when the "European Silicon Valley"?

 

USA and Canada have promoted for decades immigration policies aimed at attracting the talent from all around the globe. Some examples of the excellent results that these policies have reaped over the years are that 52% of companies in Silicon Valley were created by immigrants and 25% of all U.S. patents were registered by foreigners.

On the opposite side is Europe, where most immigrants are not qualified and the diplomatic formalities to get a visa are endless for qualified individuals. In times of crisis, when the whole world is aware of the need to support and promote talent and innovation, it would be wise to adopt such measures to combat the crisis and solve real problems in the long term.

On October 23, 2007 the European Commission enacted a bill to regulate and encourage legal immigration of skilled workers. It is called the "Blue Card" (inspired in the American Green Card)  to grant residence visas. However, more than a year and a half later it lacks of final approval . The global economic crisis has changed the scenario dramatically. Because of that, perhaps it is time to start thinking in effective measures for the long run.

One example is Spain, where the real state and international crisis have hit seriously some of the pillars of its economy. "Spain was basically Florida, with a housing bubble inflated by both resident and holiday purchases, and the bubble has burst" *. Now, the Spaniards should set aside public expenditures of billions of euros in measures of discussed effectiveness to fight the crisis (€2,500 million to improve the efficiency of houses and hotels), and start reconsidering how to really overcome the situation and rebuild a sinking economy.

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* Paul Krugman: "The pain in Spain …"