Can we talk about immigration?

Is immigration still a taboo subject? The debate may have opened up for politicians but voters are still anxious about discussing it, as a new poll from Sky News demonstrates. 42 per cent stated they think the current debate about immigration is being unfairly ‘shut down’ by accusations of racism, compared to just 24 per cent who think it is sensible and healthy. 40 per cent also believe they can’t discuss immigration openly because they are worried they will be seen as a bigot.

As Nigel Farage has frequently warned, Westminster appears to take a rather different view of immigration. In the last 12 months, all three party leaders have tried to highlight that Britain can have an open dialogue about immigration. Take this speech by Ed Miliband last December, where he was attempting to show Labour can also talk about dealing with immigration:

‘We must not fall into the trap of believing that to talk about people’s anxieties is to fuel them.