Migration

2311 Words5 Pages

Migration

Migration is one of the most important issues facing international politics today and is becoming

more prevalent an issue every year. In 1980 the estimated number of refugees was 8.2m, 1990 -

15m, 1992 - 20m (Castles and Miller, 1993, p 84). In our society there are a lot of preconceptions

and prejudices about immigration and its effect: "they are stealing our jobs!" "They are all

scroungers" and "we are to generous to them". It can be argued that these all arise from institutions

such as the tabloid media and right wing political groups, but also from past Government policy

which took a hard line on immigration and old colonial ideologies of mistrust and suspicion

towards foreigners which have been passed down through the ages. So what is the true economic

impact of immigration on a receiving country? Where does it have effect? Is it substantial or

minimal? Is it positive or negative? As immigration affects different countries in different ways, and

as there are so many different forms of immigration e.g. asylum seekers, refugees, temporary

settlers, permanent settlers, illegal immigration and immigration from one part of a country to

another, it is impossible to give universal answers to these questions. However I will examine the

arguments for and against immigration to try establish a picture of whether the economic impact on

the whole is positive or negative for a receiving country. I will f...

... middle of paper ...

...world. Macmillan Press, London. 1993 White, B (ed) Issues in World politics.

Macmillan Press. London. 1997. Chapter 10. Bali, S. Migration and Refugees. Collinson, S.

Beyond Borders: West European Migration policy towards the 21st century. Royal Institute of

International Affairs, 1993 INTERNET www.bbc.co.uk -

http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/talking_point www.combat18.com -

http://www.whitepride.com/views/#immigration) www.britishnationalparty.com

http://www.BNP.net/manif11.html www.urban.org The Urban Institute (USA) Reports used in

www.urban.org Fix, M and Passel, J.S Immigration and Immigrants - Setting the record straight.

1994. http://www.urban.org/pubs/immig/immig.html)

Open Document