74 per cent do not want restrictions put on the free movement of labour within the EU.
Three quarters do not want restrictions put on the free movement of labour within the EU
In recent weeks, and on the back of UKIP’s victory in the European elections, there have been voices on the left calling for a tougher approach to immigration.
At the end of May seven Labour MPs wrote to Ed Miliband calling on him to curb free movement within the European Union.
There have also, however, been a number of unapologetic defences of free movement.
Former prime minister Tony Blair wasted no time in putting his cards on the table, calling on Ed Miliband to take on UKIP or else risk confusing Labour’s core supporters.
And a poll of Left Foot Forward readers finds that most are with Blair on this one: 74 per cent do not want restrictions put on the free movement of labour within the EU, compared to just 23 per cent who do.
2 per cent of respondents said they were unsure.
Unsurprisingly perhaps, LFF readers are more liberal than the public at large. When asked recently what they thought of EU citizens having the right to live and work in other member states, 33 per cent of the public thought it was a good thing compared to 55 per cent who thought it a bad thing.
So in sum, most of us on the left still appear to believe in the principle of free movement. I’m not so sure everyone on the left will necessarily feel happy about finding themselves in the same political boat as Tony Blair though.
317 people took part in the survey between 2 and 4 June
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7 Responses to “Left Foot Forward readers overwhelmingly back free movement”
Sparky
But only certain types of trade, Newsbot. You don’t, for instance like financial trade, do you?
Leon Wolfeson
I’m all for financial trade. I’m not for casino-style gambling “trading”and high-frequency computer “trading”, which are not actually trading at all, but simply loss-making instruments.