Ask voters what the most important issue facing Britain is and just 2 per cent say immigration. Even when you expand it to the most important issues, the figure only reaches 6 per cent. This is a dramatic turnaround from 2015 when 56 per cent listed immigration as one of the top issues facing the country. In my Times column today, I ask what explains this shift.
The end of free movement and the resumption of border control has taken much of the heat out of the issue
In part, it is Covid. Before the pandemic, net migration to Britain was running at 313,000. In the past year, though, hundreds of thousands have returned to their home country for lockdown. The Office for Budget Responsibility estimates that the population might have fallen by 1.3 million — about 2 per cent — due to the exodus of foreign nationals who are not expected to return.
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