Immigration and trust in politics in Britain

Mclaren, L. (2012) Immigration and trust in politics in Britain. British Journal of Political Science, 42(1), pp. 163-185. (doi: 10.1017/S0007123411000251)

Abstract

A previously overlooked explanation for varying individual levels of political trust is concern about immigration. This article examines the effect of concern about immigration on political trust in Britain, where levels of opposition to immigration have remained high since the 1960s and yet the implications of such opposition are still unclear. Using the pre-election and post-election panel component of the 2005 British Election Study and the 2002–03 European Social Survey, the author shows, after controlling for other predictors of trust in politics, that concerns about the impact of immigration significantly affect political trust. In addition, in 2005 the perception that government had not handled the issue of immigration effectively also significantly affected political trust, with both linear and interactive effects.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Mclaren, Professor Lauren
• Authors: Mclaren, L.
• College/School: College of Social Sciences > School of Social and Political Sciences > Politics
• Journal Name: British Journal of Political Science
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press
• ISSN: 0007-1234
• ISSN (Online): 1469-2112