In the 1950-60's
governments
encouraged
short term
immigration to
relieve labour
shortages in
their economies
The main
migrants were
from
Sub-Saharan
Africa, N.Africa,
the Caribbean
and S.Asia
Common features of
immigrants: employed
in low skilled work e.g.
textiles, sent home
remittances to family,
returned home when
made a sufficient
amount of money
Immigration flows
after 1970:
Main features of immigration
into Europe: coming from less
developed regions in Asia &
Africa, increase in number of
migrants, immigration for social
& economic reasons e.g.
families settle permanently,
asylum seekers fleeing wars &
persecution e.g. Iraq
Consequences of migration:
Benefits for the host
country: fill skill gaps &
shortages, reduce wage
inflation, economic growth
as migrants are consumers,
pay taxes, can open new
markets e.g. ethnic foods
Costs for the host country: reduce
wages for domestic workers, low
skilled migrants may need training,
pressure/ demand on education,
health & housing so may raise prices
Benefits for the
source country:
migrants send home
remittances (can be
up to 10% of GDP),
returning migrants
may have new skills
to use in home
country, less
pressure of land &
resources, reduce
unemployment
Costs for the
source country:
slow economic
growth, if young
people leave the
aged dependants
rise, innovation
may slow &
dependency on
remittances rise
Social consequences:
Leads to segregation &
a cultural gap, many
ethnic groups cluster
together to form urban
enclaves or ghettos with
minimal contact to the
host country
Environmental consequences:
Becomes overcrowded
so population growth
may reach sustainable
limits, pressure on green
belt for housing space -
loss of countryside
Political consequences:
Politicians have responded to
an unease about immigration,
e.g. in France they have put a
ban on girls & women wearing
Hijabs in school & uni's & the
niqab & burqa in public
Managing migration: limit illegal migration,
meet international obligations in accepting
asylum seekers, integrate immigrants into
host society, match immigration to the needs
of the economy & minimise emigration of key
workers to prevent brain drain
UK immigration policy:
Accepting only genuine asylum seekers,
accept the more skilled/ educated people for
economy growth potential, allow worker
registration schemes (WRS) so migrants from
E.Europe can fill low-skilled, low-wage jobs &
employment gap, permanent residence is
granted after passing a 'Life in the UK' test