The illegal immigrants desperate to escape squalor of Britain

[afleitch]

Why has Britain gotten so xenophobic? Is it because of Eastern Europeans immigrating once the EU expanded in 04, because you never really heard much about groups like UKIP or the BNP gaining any traction in the 90's and much of the 00's.

The Tories were doing well the job of capting racist voters.

Ever heard about Enoch Powell or the Tories saying "If you want a n for your neighbour, vote Labour." (or something like that)?

It wasn't Enoch, but that slogan was used.

And the Tories certainly haven't helped - their campaigns in 2001 and 2005 were pretty much openly anti-immigration.

"British Jobs for British Workers" - Gordon Brown.

[afleitch]

Why has Britain gotten so xenophobic? Is it because of Eastern Europeans immigrating once the EU expanded in 04, because you never really heard much about groups like UKIP or the BNP gaining any traction in the 90's and much of the 00's.

Exactly. Part of the reason why I quoted it is that there is a tendency just to 'blame the Tories' en masse for immigration issues or tension in the UK, when Labour politicians (and Lib Dems too) use it to their advantage. It's just laziness. It also doesn't help us tackle the issue.

The Tories were doing well the job of capting racist voters.

Ever heard about Enoch Powell or the Tories saying "If you want a n for your neighbour, vote Labour." (or something like that)?

It wasn't Enoch, but that slogan was used.

And the Tories certainly haven't helped - their campaigns in 2001 and 2005 were pretty much openly anti-immigration.

"British Jobs for British Workers" - Gordon Brown.

You know, it is hard to find an European which didn't expressed anti-immigration views. That's a vote-gainer, it hard to resist the temptation of going for easy votes.

Disgusting but I understand the logic behind that. It's like the American GOP. They attract people who don't care about their economic polities by using wedge issues. Same thing here. You attract voters with a wedge issue.