The UK’s new, stricter immigration system is to be run by a woman whose Ugandan-born parents arrived with ‘nothing’, writes Lionel Laurent
The UK’s new, stricter immigration system is to be run by a woman whose Ugandan-born parents arrived with ‘nothing’US President Donald Trump and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, both of immigrant stock. Picture: AFP/SAUL LOEBDonald Trump’s German-born grandfather came to America illegally as a teenager at the end of the 19th century, a fact he doesn’t mention when threatening to deport millions of undocumented migrants.
As frustrating as it may be for immigrants like myself who fall foul of or disagree with their policies, the likes of Johnson and Patel seem in sync with many of their fellow citizens. Leaving the EU and introducing new immigration curbs were two campaign pledges that won their party a parliamentary majority in December. One YouGov survey conducted this week found that 48% of Brits believe the level of UK immigration is “too high”, compared to 33% who think it “about right” and 6% “too low”.
The divide highlights the winners and losers of globalisation. Lower barriers to trade and immigration have been good for the economy overall, as work by economists such as Jonathan Portes shows, leading to cheaper, more efficiently produced goods and nearly full employment in the UK. But more competition has also created strains at the margins.
With Brexit achieved, and free EU movement about to come to an end, it feels like a large part of the debate is over. After a decade-long surge in EU migration to the UK, migrants are starting to go home. The issue isn’t as high a priority for Brits as it used to be, even if it’s still an emotive subject.
It’s hard to see how Johnson can square this circle. The points aren’t given generously — some 70% of EU migrants wouldn’t make the cut. . That’s a huge gap to fill in less than a year for the UK’s 800,000 young people not in work currently. Their pride might be stung if it turns out that raising barriers to entry means a wider gulf between well-remunerated foreigners and badly paid natives doing the menial stuff.
This is only the beginning of a long process, however. For the first time in decades the UK is actually debating how to manage the entirety of its immigration policy, and the Anywheres should jump at the chance to take part.What Citizens of the World Can Learn from Nationalism
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