British Immigration Policy after Brexit: Dilemmas of the Center-Right

Much ink has been spilled on the influence of far-right wing political parties and their influence on immigration policy design. Yet comparatively little scholarly attention has focused on the position of center-right parties on the issue. Political parties of the center right are typically internally divided because they are torn between placating a business clientele that supports liberal immigration policies and an often more nativist group of voters in favor of more restrictive positions. The British Conservative Party embodies the inherent contradictions between these two positions and struggles to formulate a coherent position that pleases both camps. There are a number of reasons why the British case lends itself to serving as a case study for the role of center-right parties, including the minor role of the European Union even prior to Brexit, the majoritarian voting system and the room for maneuver this affords for policymaking. Drawing on transcripts of parliamentary debates, position papers, and journalistic coverage and focusing on developments since 2000, this paper explores the hypothesis that the role of business actors and foreign policy considerations will outweigh strict electoral considerations - even in the presence of a challenger from the Far Right. Departing from dominant claims in the immigration literature, the hypothesis examined is thus that center right parties can insulate themselves much more from alleged pressures to assume a restrictive position. They can and will ignore and ride out grassroots level pressure.