Wednesday, May 24, 2017

Majority of Britons think minorities threaten UK culture, report says

Humanitarian index finds quarter of people believe immigrants take jobs away while few think PM can solve the refugee crisis

Passengers wait at passport control at Stansted airport

More than half of Britons believe their culture is threatened by ethnic minorities living in the UK, a report says.

A quarter think immigrants take jobs away and a third think they remove more from society than they contribute, this year’s Aurora Humanitarian Index survey said.

The survey also found respondents think the UK could be less capable of dealing with the refugee crisis after Brexit. And researchers found an overwhelming lack of confidence in world leaders to address the issue.

Only a minority think the prime minister, Theresa May, is the best person to resolve it. Support for humanitarian action is also in steep decline. The report said: “This year’s findings demonstrate an overall decline in the support for humanitarian action based on scepticism in the ability to make an impact and ambivalence in defending social values over self-interest.”

The Conservative general election manifesto says current levels of net migration – 273,000 – was “still too high” and promised to slash the number to “sustainable levels”. No timetable has been set.

The 2017 Aurora Humanitarian Index surveyed nearly 6,500 people in 12 countries.

In the UK it found:

  • 56% of people felt local culture was threatened by ethnic minorities.
  • 24% felt migrants took jobs away but half believed their impact was neutral.
  • 34% thought minorities took more from society than they contributed.
  • After Brexit the UK is expected to be less capable of addressing the refugee crisis.
  • Theresa May was named by only 15% as best positioned to solve the refugee crisis.
  • The research was carried out before the Manchester attack, but terrorism was regarded as the most pressing global humanitarian challenge by two-thirds of those surveyed in Britain.
  • Forced migration and hunger were also seen as important issues.

Ruben Vardanyan, co-founder of the index, said: “The sense of apathy towards humanitarianism today highlights an urgent need for engagement in every sector.

“However, this negativity is counter-balanced by the incredibly positive attitudes of youth towards humanitarianism and the individual impact on the refugee crisis.

“All of us need to educate and motivate the young people around the world so they not only understand their capacity for meaningful impact, but are inspired to act upon it.”

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