What sort of country do we live in? UKIP, immigration & poison

A UKIP voter tweeted out a UKIP image suggesting that immigration causes, among other things, crime. I disagree. There is not a causal connection per se between all immigration and increased crime in the UK. And so I challenged this thesis.

I now face a volley of abuse from UKIP tweeters. Apparently I am a “leftard”. Hmmm… the various libertarians with whom I discuss shrinking the state in a way that deficit denying UKIP – happily announcing a raft of new spending pledges all paid for by the cost savings from leaving the EU – will be surprised to hear that I am “leftard”.

I support immigration because it makes Britain richer and it makes it more diverse. I am partly descended from Irish immigrants and my wife’s parents came here from India. Had UKIP been in charge sixty years ago, the parents-in-law would not have been able to pay taxes here for fifty years supporting the NHS (as a doctor) and small businesses as an accountant.

We can debate the economics of immigration all day. To assert that immigration causes crime and that anyone who disagrees is a “leftard” may win UKIP some votes.  But it is sort of poison that means that, even though I am dyed in the wool Eurosceptic, it will never gain my support.