A cap on immigration is another lie.

When, during the General Election campaign the Conservatives promised to put a cap on immigration, we pointed out that this was a big fat porkie pie.

Since the ratification of the Lisbon treaty (Constitution) immigration and asylum policies have been dictated by the EU and therefore the unelected EU bureaucrats have the final say on this topic.

We also pointed out that anyone with an EU passport can come to the UK to live, work and claim benefits and there is nothing ‘government’ can do to stop them.

Once again we have been proved right, it was revealed that Bulgaria has announced plans to hand passports to more than 500,000 non-EU citizens – giving them long-term rights to live and work in the UK.

Nationality minister Bozhidar Dimitrov says the new citizens – currently from the Ukraine and Moldova – would be free to come and live in Bulgaria.

However, EU border rules mean they could also set up home in other EU countries, including Britain.

Sofia, the capital city of Bulgaria, has said it is giving passports to 500,000 inhabitants of the Ukraine and Moldova, which would allow them the right to live and work in the UK.

In the past year alone, Bulgaria has issued almost 80,000 new passports to people who claim Bulgarian descent, dating back to their grandparents, living in other countries.

Currently, Britain has controls on the number of citizens from Bulgaria and Romania, -they both joined the EU in 2007- who can work here each year.

No more than 25,000 low-skilled workers are permitted to take jobs in agriculture and food processing.

These controls – imposed after ministers so badly misjudged the number of Eastern Europeans that would arrive from Poland, and the seven other ex-Communist countries which joined the EU in 2004 – last until 2011.

Under EU rules, they can be extended for another two years, a decision ministers are almost certain to approve.

But after 2013, Bulgarians will be allowed the same rights of free movement as any other EU national. That means the 500,000 migrants about to be granted passports will be free to work and travel to Britain. Similar passport schemes have been launched by Hungary and Romania.

If a significant number of the new EU citizens travel to the UK, it will make it far harder for the Coalition to meet its promise of reducing net migration – the difference between the number of people arriving each year, and those leaving – from 196,000 to the ‘tens of thousands’.

When Poland joined the EU in 2004, ministers predicted only 13,000 people would move here. In total, more than one million have arrived.

Hungary recently announced that, from next year, it will begin handing out passports to minority groups that have historic or ethnic ties to the East European country but live elsewhere.

The Hungarians will have immediate access to the UK, since there are no controls on countries which joined the EU in 2004.

Immigration minister Damian Green said: ‘The new Government is determined to reduce net migration to the tens of thousands per year.

‘We have already introduced an interim cap on non-EU economic migrants and introduced English language requirements for spouse and partner visas.

‘We will introduce a permanent cap, bring forward proposals to prevent the abuse of student visas and implement transitional controls on all new EU member states in future.’

If Damian Green wants to be taken seriously, he should start a campaign to kick out the million or so illegal immigrants living in the UK.

So far there is no indication that government is moving in that direction, and no one distances themselves for an amnesty for illegal immigrants.