Strange times in French politics
With youth unemployment running at 24 per cent, it is unsurprising that people are being attracted to fringe ideologies which offer simplistic solutions.
Immigration
Severe failings in the government’s crime checks for migrants
Despite the Tories’ tough rhetoric on immigration, it is clear that they do not have a grip on the increasing demand for British visas.
Why our government must be more generous with Syrian refugees
Support for the Syrian Resettlement Programme is one small act that the government could take to show that compassion is a core British value.
Policy groundhog day: On immigration, Cameron’s words were nothing new
If you take the long view on immigration policy, the similarities between Cameron’s speech and the language of immigration over the last twenty five years are striking.
Three good things and three bad things from Cameron’s immigration speech
David Cameron’s immigration speech was more nuanced than it was briefed out beforehand. Rather than being yet another draconian crackdown, there were some welcome announcements. On that note, here are three good things and three bad things about the speech.
Migrants come to the UK to find jobs, not to claim benefits
Until there is concerted action to revive the failing economies of southern and eastern Europe, there is little hope that the government’s net migration target will be met.
The St George’s Cross has become an emblem of the working class
Like a vote for Ukip, to fly the St George’s Cross is as much to declare one’s antipathy to the liberal, metropolitan well-to-do middle-classes as it is a protest against the EU.
Migration Watch and the Daily Express are dangerously close to open racism
What’s important to Migration Watch and the Express is not a baby boom as such, but a ‘foreign baby boom’.
Rochester’s concerns about immigration are bound up with failing public services
For the residents of Rochester, addressing their concerns about living standards, schools and healthcare would go a long way to dampening their worries about immigration.
More migrants are becoming British citizens. And it could help to calm concerns about immigration
Settling down and ‘fitting in’ are valued deeply by migrants and long-settled residents alike.