LondonMix Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > According the polls., Remain has pulled narrowly > ahead in most and at worst drawn even. Most of > the polling was done before Jo Cox's death so the > surge for Remain can only be partly attributable > to that. > > Louisa, what exactly do you think Cameron needed > to address about immigration? > > Immigration is 100% an economic positive for the > UK. EU immigrants make up 5% of the country. > Loads of Brtis have left for Europe as well so the > net population change is only a couple million > people. They are in work and contributing tax as > well as providing vital skills the country needs > to continue growing and providing public services, > particularly the NHS in which immigrants play a > huge role. > > Most EU immigrants are in London, where most > people are pro-Remain because they are best placed > to see the advantages (economic and cultural) of > EU migration. The supposedly lower skilled > immigrants from Eastern Europe make up less than > half of total EU immigrants and are too small a > population to have had any widespread impact on > most working class people. > > Continuing to pander to the misinformation and > paranoia in my view only legitimizes EU > immigration concerns driven by fear rather than > reality. The lies about Turkey and Middle Eastern > countries joining the EU as a means to stoke bad > feeling is for me beyond the pale. > > The Leave campaign really should focus on > articulating the advantages of leaving the EU and > why its worth paying the economic price it will > entail (I still have no clear vision of this). I completely agree. Unfortunately for many, many years, the press have discussed immigration almost entirely in terms of 'a problem'. This narrative has been at best, left unchallenged by politicians, at worst, encouraged. It's convenient for everyone to have a scapegoat handy when needed and so certain sections of the press have been allowed to peddle misinformation, prejudice and insinuation about 'dangerous immigrants'. It becomes a truism in the end... How do you address the 'problem', what's your answer? The only person I've actually heard reject the premise and say 'there isn't a general problem' is Corbyn and not surprisingly, it's been met with derision.