Performance politics: Building public confidence in immigration policy

Immigration has become an increasingly important issue for publics in many European countries and dissatisfaction with the way that governments have handled immigration seems to be eroding trust in mainstream politics and political parties.

One way to understand the decline in political trust is as a result of policy failure, whether in relation to developing, implementing, enforcing or communicating an effective policy to the public. This seminar will explore how policymakers and politicians in different European countries should respond to public expectations of performance in admissions policy in view of the constraints on what can be delivered, as well as how immigration policy can effectively be communicated to build public confidence.

This seminar is part of Policy Network’s new research initiative on immigration and political trust, kindly supported by the Barrow Cadbury Trust, which aims to develop proposals that will help politicians build public confidence in immigration policy. The event will bring together high-level politicians, policymakers and experts from across Europe.

Opinion and essays

What do voters want from leaders on immigration? 

Shamit Saggar of the University of Sussex explores this question in relation to Labour’s performance in government, arguing that tensions between tribalism and managerial competence pulled the party in opposite directions.

Breaking the media logic on immigration

Hajo Boomgaarden, communications expert at the University of Amsterdam, asks how politicians can break the media logic of negative coverage of immigration and confront the “populist zeitgeist” that is haunting Europe.

Will the cap stem immigration concerns?   

Lauren McLaren asks whether the UK Government's cap will work to address public concerns, arguing that the actual number of immigrants in a country appears to be unrelated to public hostility to immigration.

Migration control and the surveillance myth  

Christina Boswell argues that media-driven expectations fuel harsh, simplified government rhetoric, masking the impediments to controlling migration, the more complex reality and the pragmatic approach of officials on the ground.

   This project is kindly supported by The Barrow Cadbury Trust

• Agenda - Performance politics.pdf
• Discussion.note - Performance politics.pdf
• Seminar Report - Building public confidence in immigration policy.pdf