Poll shows British public overwhelmingly favours 'hostile environment' immigration policy after Windrush fiasco

The Windrush fiasco may have resulted in the resignation of the Home Secretary but a new poll has found that attitudes to immigration have not changed in Britain.

A YouGov survey has found that while voters think the Government has not handled the plight of the Windrush generation well, they still support tough policies.

One such policy – often described as the ‘hostile environment‘ – still has overwhelming public support, with 71% of Brits supporting people being forced to show documents proving their right to be in Britain for work or to live.

The survey found that just 15% of voters oppose the policy, while 82% think people should have to prove their right to be in the UK before accepting a job.

Some 79% think documents must be shown before registering with a GP while 74% believe they should be shown before being able to rent a home.

The survey also found that attitudes towards immigration in general remains negative, with 63% believing immigration into Britain in the last 10 years has been too high.

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While this represents a 7% drop, the proportion that believe immigration is bad for Britain has remained the same.

However, over 70% of Brits are happy with either the same or increased levels of skilled immigration, while 73% are happy with existing or increased numbers of foreign students paying to study at British universities.

With regards to the Windrush generation specifically – Commonwealth citizens who came to Britain who do not have paperwork proving when they came – 64% believe has handled the issue badly, while just 10% believe they have handled it well.

Previous polling found that 78% of Brits believed Windrush migrants have the right to stay in the country.