Post-Brexit Brits much more positive towards migration, survey finds
Brits in 2022 had more positive attitudes towards migration than at any time in two decades, a survey has found.
Analysts at the National Centre for Social Research (NatCen) quizzed 1,149 people over a year about their feelings towards migration, as part of the European Social Survey (ESS).
They found in 2022, 59 per cent of Brits scored migration seven or more out of 10 for how positive they felt it was for the UK, compared to 17 per cent in 2002, when the survey began.
58 per cent also scored seven or more on migration enriching cultural life, compared to 33 per cent in 2002, while 56 per cent rated migration a seven-plus for making the UK a better place to live, in comparison to just 20 per cent in 2002.
The spike in positive attitudes came after the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed in May that 2022 migration was the highest overall into the UK since records began.
Alun Humphrey, who led the ESS in the UK, said the survey had “robust methodology” and the fact it had gone on for over 20 years gave “confidence in the trends in the data”.
He added: “It seems like the issue of immigration is likely to remain on the front pages for some time and could well become a key battleground at the next general election.”
Attitudes appeared to change following Brexit, the researchers found. After remaining fairly stable between 2002 to 2014, post-2016 Brits were increasingly positive towards migrants.
In 2002, just eight per cent of people thought we should allow many immigrants from different races or ethnic groups into the UK. That shot up to 34 per cent in 2022.
Similarly, only eight per cent of people in 2002 wanted to let in many immigrants from “poorer countries outside Europe”; while in 2022 the figure was 31 per cent.
The shift applied across the political spectrum, researchers found. But Labour supporters were more likely to want to see “many” immigrants, while the Conservatives backed “some”.