The Staggers

The New Statesman’s rolling politics blog

Labour and immigration: the debate continues

More voices speak out against a lurch to the right.

By Daniel Trilling Published 25 May 2010 17:43

There's an excellent post over at Next Left by the Smith Institute's David Coats, on why calls for Labour to take an even "tougher" line on immigration are misguided. Coats stresses how new arrivals from eastern Europe over the past decade have benefited Britain's economy:

The best evidence suggests that there was no negative impact on the employment prospects of "native" British workers and no downward pressure on wages either. Some may find this conclusion counter-intuitive and will draw attention to anecdotes involving job loss and wage cuts. But public policy has to be driven by social science, not by what somebody in the pub or at the school gates has told you.

A strong case can be made that the arrival of large number of Poles and Lithuanians helped the economy to grow more rapidly than would otherwise have been the case. Labour shortages were avoided, interest rates remained low and inflation was subdued. At the same time, of course, the National Minimum Wage was rising faster than average earnings, which guaranteed a firm floor in the labour market. These are hallmarks of policy success, not failure.

He links New Labour's immigration rhetoric (as I did last week) to a wider problem with addressing the concerns of working-class Britons. This is a point also raised at the weekend by the Guardian's John Harris, who consequently takes a dim view of the front-runners in the Labour leadership contest:

Some Labour people seem to have come to a truly stupid conclusion: that the Con-Dem coalition has to be outflanked on the right, because the proles demand it. This takes us to what might prove the biggest problem of all: that four ex-wonks with limited life experience may not be the best people to divine what exactly it is that the fabled white working class is after.

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Tags: Labour leadership Immigration

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8 comments

Tue, 2010-05-25 23:49 — Alexander St. Charles (not verified)

Yes let us all go and read the scribbling of that arch-cretin David Coats. Who better to tell us all about jobs than a man who does not appear to have a real job himself (what exactly is the ‘Work’ Foundation anyway?) It’s always great to see a cheer leader for neoliberalism in Labour Party clothing.
The greater the supplies of labour the lower wages are.
This fact cannot be escaped (and by God do globalists try).
The only progressive things to do are halt all legal immigration, defend the borders so illegals can’t get in and deport all illegal immigrants. Thus lowering the supply of cheap labour, raising wages and restoring sovereignty.

Wed, 2010-05-26 03:15 — ISC

The Labour Party will never get back in power if it continues to alienate it's former core supporters through supporting excessive levels of immigration.

However ill educated the white 'working class' may be it still has the nous to realise there is a connection between the demand for social housing and the supply of same.

Wed, 2010-05-26 03:55 — clem the gem (not verified)

The working class are not as stupid as some make out: the question is not about the rationing of social housing, but that there is a complete lack of it. This also affects the middle classes too - without a vibrant public rented sector, house prices become ridiculous, as we have seen over the last 30 years.
Many of the immigrants from eastern eyrope who came here in the last decade have been doing jobs that brish workers either would not or are unqualified to do.
The lack of decent skills based education comes back to the virtual abolition of apprenticeships in the 60s and 70s by private enterprise.

Tue, 2010-05-25 18:18 — Elizabeth (not verified)

The Coats article is good, and I certainly would not want to see Labour become an anti-immigration party. However, many of the anecdotal complaints I've heard about "too many" immigrants have really been complaints about "too little" affordable housing, and Coats doesn't address that issue at all.

Tue, 2010-05-25 18:55 — mr_wonderful (not verified)

The idea that Labour would take a "lurch to the right" for their immigration policy under any of the 6 candidates is laughable.

The left and right are only minor players now anyway, the dull, pragmatic, compromise of the centre is where the "action" is now.

Tue, 2010-05-25 22:08 — Bored of Birmingham (not verified)

Wibble...

Tue, 2010-05-25 23:13 — clem the gem (not verified)

Abdul, shall I kiss it better for you?

Any immigration policy needs to be open, honest and fair. If we accept free movement of Capital around the globe with little or no regulation, we can hardly blame people for following the money.
aS Elizabeth says, it is the lack of social housing and frontline resources that lead to growing BNP support. Campaigns that include these issues undercut anti-immigration racists every time.