This chapter examines how public attitudes influence UK migration policy. A key line of thinking in the literature, drawing on political science, posits that the attitudes of the public are reflected in policy as government reacts to voters’ intentions, as one would expect in a liberal democratic society (Hansen, 2000). However, there is a second, more traditional line of thinking that draws on sociology. This explains UK migration policy change as paternalistic and elite driven. The ‘elite’ were of their time, and worked in a framework of empire and commonwealth that was prejudiced against non-white immigration (Paul, 1997; Spencer, 1997). Such attitudes were widespread in British society, which was overwhelmingly hostile towards non-white immigrants: in other words British society was (and may remain) socialised against non-white immigration.

These two arguments tend to have one particular feature in common. To differing degrees, they assume that public attitudes have influenced migration policy to restrict entrants to the UK, with the aim of a ‘zero-migration’ settlement; and that from the 1970s this has more or less been successfully achieved. However, earlier chapters have shown that ‘zero-migration’ no longer exists in practice or intention, which in turn demands a rethink.

This chapter takes its cue from such debates and is based on two questions. What are public attitudes to immigration? And have such attitudes impacted on political calculations?

Public attitudes: are they negative?

The growing evidence base on public attitudes towards immigration (for example, ICAR, 2005a; Coe et al, 2004; Crawley, 2005; Saggar and Drean, 2001) clearly shows that there is widespread resentment of immigrants in the UK, particularly of asylum seekers and illegal immigrants (Halman, 2001; McLaren and Johnson, 2004; Lewis, 2005). The most conclusive evidence on UK attitudes comes from the British social attitudes survey, which has tracked public attitudes since 1983. The trend over the course of Labour's administration is one of rising resentment: in 1995 approximately two-thirds of the population believed the numbers of immigrants should be reduced, a proportion that rose to three-quarters by 2003 (McLaren and Johnson, 2004, p 172).

The fact that measures of public attitudes indicate hostility towards immigrants is unlikely to be a revelation to readers. Significantly though, public attitudes are not homogenous, differing by gender, race, geography, wealth, education, values and other variables.