by LAUREN CODLING
NEGATIVE responses to immigration have shifted, research has found, as an expert said media coverage of the Windrush scandal and Brexit could have contributed to the change in attitudes.
Statistics from Ipsos Mori, for the BBC Crossing Divides series, have revealed that almost half of people (48 per cent) in England believe immigration has been positive for the country.
Just over a quarter (26 per cent) felt it had a negative impact.
In comparison, in 2011, a similar survey by Ipsos Mori found that a majority (64 per cent) believed immigration had been bad for the UK.
Sunder Katwala, the director of think tank British Future, believes public perceptions have changed for a variety of reasons.
He told Eastern Eye on Tuesday (5): “Some Leave voters feel the referendum made their point – but [they] want a new immigration system to be pragmatic, welcoming those with skills we need.
“Others now feel more empathy towards the contributions of migrants: the media coverage of the Windrush scandal and of EU nationals worried about staying after the referendum have done more to convey that there are real lives behind the immigration statistics.”
Katwala said the home secretary, Sajid Javid, should “seize the opportunity” and show that winning public confidence for a sensible immigration policy “isn’t all about trying to slash the numbers”.
“Combining a sense of control with welcoming the positive contribution of migration and promoting integration would chime much better with where the public are than Theresa May’s broken net migration target,” he said. “That has lost trust by making impossible
promises that were never met.”
Other main findings by the Ipsos Mori survey, taken as part of an international poll of nearly 20,000 people across 27 countries, showed 47 per cent of people in the UK believe that society is more in danger now because of political divisions than it was 20 years ago.
Figures also revealed that 36 per cent feel comfortable sharing their political views with people who don’t agree with them, while 31 per cent of Britons say that all or almost all their friends are the same ethnicity.
According to data released last week, 283,000 more people moved to the UK than left the country in the year to September 2018. This is almost three times the government net migration target of 100,000.
British Future, which addresses identity and migration, released a study last September to explain the shift in attitudes on immigration.
Co-authored by advocacy group Hope not Hate, The National Conversation on Immigration report consulted people across 60 towns and cities.
Referring to the findings, Katwala said people are more positive about migration when they feel that their voice counts.
“Most people are balancers,” he said. “They want a migration debate that recognises both local pressures and economic gains, and where we treat people who come to our
country decently.
“More people are interested in how we make immigration work fairly than in the shouting match about immigration they often see in the newspapers or online, where those with the most hostile views make the most noise.”
People appeared to be more confident about immigration when they had social contact with migrants, a key reason why younger people, especially in bigger cities, have the most positive views of all, he noted.
“Integration is making a long-term contribution to addressing anxieties about immigration
too,” Katwala added.
Bob Blackman MP speaks during the event