One million migrants in Spain apply to regularise status in new scheme

Programme defending benefits of immigration attracts double number of applicants expected

More than one million undocumented migrants and asylum seekers have applied to regularise their status in Spain under a government programme to harness and defend the benefits of immigration at a time when most European countries are pulling up the drawbridge.

Although the massive regularisation initiative, announced by the socialist-led government in January, was originally intended to benefit around 500,000 people, it had attracted more than twice that number of applicants by the time the registration period ended on Tuesday.