THE POLITICS OF IMMIGRATION

Figure 13: What Green voters thought of the different parties on
immigration
Green UKIP Labour Conservative Lib Dem SNP
Talked too little about 27% 15% 39% 40% 50% 8%
immigration
About right 71% 22% 42% 33% 44% 70%
Talked too much about
immigration
3% 63% 19% 27% 6% 23%
(Sample: 136 respondents who voted Green in 2015)
In the Survation poll, one in five Green voters felt that Labour
talked too much about immigration – so they were twice as likely as other
voters to think so – but Green voters were more likely to say that Labour
had said too little about the issue, or got it right. While some respondents
might mean that Labour should have spoken up more positively for the
benefits of migration, the Green vote itself covered a broader spectrum
of views of immigration than some might anticipate. This suggests that
only a minority of Green voters were motivated by the party having a
distinctive position on immigration.
Green hopes of making major gains on immigration perhaps
underestimated the extent to which Labour and the Liberal Democrats
retained a reputation as broadly pro-migration parties, including with
Green voters. Moreover, in areas that seemed most promising for a
Green appeal, such as university towns and cities, the Labour, Lib Dem
and Conservative candidates usually took a pro-migration line, reflecting
more liberal views in these constituencies. The Bristol West constituency,
for example, saw an unusual three-way battle between the Lib Dem
incumbent, Labour and the Greens, with all three contenders making a
distinctively pro-immigration case.
Ed Miliband and Labour retained high levels of trust on
immigration with ethnic minority voters in particular. The Survation poll
suggests that the Green Party also did as well with ethnic minority as
with white voters, winning 5% of the non-white vote. That is a striking
finding, since the Green party has been candid about its struggles with
ethnic diversity, fielding fewer ethnic minority candidates than UKIP.
This support among minority voters largely reflects the increased diversity
of the young, metropolitan and student electorate: one in five first time
voters in 2015 were non-white.
A broader shade of green
The Survation poll suggests that the party had a potential market
of up to a quarter of the electorate, of whom a tenth seriously considered
giving the party their support. 7% of those who did not vote Green say
they strongly considered voting for the party, while 22% of respondents
say they considered doing so. Half of voters are clear that they did not
consider voting Green.
This potential Green support was related to the party’s views on
immigration – but perhaps not as closely as some might think Of the
pro-migration quarter of voters, one in three considered voting Green and
14% of non-Green voters with pro-migration views strongly considered
29 British Future / The Politics of Immigration