text: Everyone who comes to Britain should know how to speak English, Labour Ed Miliband has warned as he admitted Labour made mistakes on immigration. The Labour leader admitted that in the past his party had been 'too timid' about making clear that for communities to live together they must use a shared language. But the Tories said there was nothing in Mr Miliband's plans to act to reduce the number of people moving to Britain, after net migration hit 298,000 in a year. Scroll down for video . Ed Miliband admitted that in the past his party had been 'too timid' about making clear that for communities to live together they must use a shared language . Mr Miliband pledged a new crackdown on illegal exploitation of migrant workers, promising a Home Office task force to boost prosecutions and fines on bad employers. Speaking in Wirral West - a marginal seat held by the Tory Employment Minister Esther McVey - the Labour leader said exploitation drives low skilled migration and holds down wages for British workers. His new unit of 100 staff will bring together people from the Gangmasters Licensing Authority and specialist police units, together with additional Home Office enforcement staff. The unit will be empowered to investigate abuse and be challenged to increase prosecutions and fines levelled against employers who break the rules. But he also warned that migrants must learn to speak English, especially in key services like the NHS. Mr Miliband said: 'Our communities are changing fast but we don't cope with change by closing our doors to each other and living our lives in separate worlds. 'Instead we must find a way to live together across communities. 'A Britain where people of all backgrounds, all cultures, all religions, can practise their own faiths but also come together to forge a common identity. 'But we can only build this shared society if we speak the same language.' In his speech in Pensby, northern England, Mr Miliband insisted that there was an 'epidemic of exploitation' He said his own parents had learned to speak English after arriving from Belgium in 1940. 'It is why I believe in a simple principle: Everyone in Britain should know how to speak English. 'Sometimes, we've been too timid about this but it is something we should expect from everyone who comes here. 'And it is especially important that people who work in public services in public facing roles should be required to speak English.' He said that 'nowhere is that more true' than in the health service. 'We all know the crucial contribution that people from overseas play in our NHS. Doctors, paramedics, social workers, nurses. Bringing specialist skills that we need. 'I will never demean or devalue their contribution to our country. 'But it is vital that people who come to fulfil these roles don't just have the right medical skills, but can communicate with those for whom they care. 'So in the future all healthcare professionals will be required to speak English to a sufficient standard so they can care effectively for patients.' The Labour leader, pictured greeting staff and students at Pensby High School, also used the speech to promise Labour would do more to secure the borders - with 1,000 extra staff at ports - and help integration . Mr Miliband told the audience how his 'parents came to Britain to flee the horrors of Nazi Germany'. He said: 'They found a country that welcomed them and offered them the opportunity to build a new life. To start a family. To work hard and make a contribution. 'I wouldn't be standing here today, asking you to elect me your Prime Minister, if it wasn't for the generosity of this great country. Conservative immigration minister James Brokenshire said nothing Ed Miliband is proposing would help control immigration . 'Where we are always stronger when we draw on the widest range of talents, perspectives and cultures. 'But I also know for that to happen, there have to be proper controls on immigration. We have got to have the right rules in place and with a Labour government we will.' He went on: 'I've been very clear about the mistakes the last Labour government made. 'We were wrong not to ensure there were maximum transitional controls when new countries joined the European Union in 2004. 'And the reason we were wrong is that working people were seeing dramatic changes in their communities that were not planned or properly prepared for. 'And we won't make that mistake in future.' Conservative immigration minister James Brokenshire said: 'Nothing Ed Miliband is proposing would help control immigration. Labour sent out 'search parties for people' and under them net migration increased more than five-fold. 'Since 2010, we have stripped more than 850 bogus colleges of their rights to sponsor foreign students, cracked down on illegal working and sham marriages, made it harder for people to live in the UK illegally, and reduced the number of appeal routes to stop spurious attempts to remain in the country. 'And the next Conservative government will seek changes to the operation of European free movement rules as a key part of our plan to renegotiate Britain's relationship with the EU. 'But a vote for Ed Miliband would risk all of that with a Labour-SNP stitch up.'
target: Labour leader says speaking English is especially important in the NHS .
  Says communities cannot live together if they don't have shared language .
  Warns exploitation drives low-skilled migration and holds down wages .
  Admits it was wrong to open the doors to Poles in 2004 without curbs .