Britons have among the most positive attitudes towards refugees in the world, a new global poll has found, despite increased hostility from the UK government to asylum seekers.
An international survey of almost 22,000 adults across 29 countries found British people had the third-most enthusiastic outlook towards refugees, just behind Spain and New Zealand.
The Ipsos study arrived as government rhetoric on migration has become increasingly toxic, with the prime minister, Rishi Sunak, staking his political credibility on a promise to “stop the boats”, a reference to halting Channel crossings and a slogan adopted by the far right.
The poll, conducted earlier this month, found views towards refugees have broadly hardened in the past 12 months compared to a spike in support after the invasion of Ukraine, although attitudes in the UK are consistently more positive than most other nations surveyed.
It found that 56% of Britons believed refugees make a “positive contribution”, compared to 45% internationally. In comparative western European countries, the figure was 39% in France and fell to less than 33% in Belgium.
In addition, more than half (54%) of Britons felt that refugees should be allowed to stay, compared to 40% globally.
The government wants to deport asylum seekers from the UK to Rwanda in the belief that acting tough on refugees could help it secure an unexpected Conservative win at the next general election. However, support for refugees in the UK has actually increased during a period when ministers have stepped up attacks on asylum seekers.
The poll found that 84% agreed with the statement that “people should be able to take refuge in other countries, to escape from war or persecution”, a proportion that stood at 73% in 2021.
Since 2021, the UK government has launched increasingly aggressive rhetoric towards asylum seekers, with the home secretary, Suella Braverman, claiming last November that there is an “invasion” of the south coast of England by migrants crossing the Channel.
Their attacks might explain why more people in Britain – along with South Africa, Italy, the US and Japan – believe that refugees are treated badly in their country. By comparison, the poll found that people in Indonesia, Poland, Peru and Germany tended to think that refugees in their country were treated well.
The proportion of Britons who agreed that the UK must close its borders to refugees “entirely” stood at 37%, down from 42% in 2021.
The findings came after one of the busiest weeks for small-boat crossings this year, with 33 boats carrying a total of 1,669 detected, figures that follow warnings on Thursday that the Home Office has no obvious plan to house new arrivals.
Other poll findings indicate that two-thirds of Britons believe asylum seekers should be allowed to work – most do not have the right – while waiting for a decision, compared to 48% globally.
Trinh Tu, managing director of public affairs at Ipsos UK, said: “Public compassion towards refugees remains high. But it’s also clear that a public perception that refugees are not genuine has also increased since 2022, leading some people to support policies that are at odds with their desire for refugees to successfully integrate.”
Over the past decade, the number of internationally displaced people has more than doubled, and last year it surpassed 100 million for the first time, up from 84 million in mid-2021.
Numbers are predicted to continue to rise, with the UN refugee agency estimating that 117.2 million people will be forcibly displaced or made stateless this year due to the growing impact of the climate emergency and increased conflicts among other factors.
