Racial intolerance has also motivated immigration. A classic example is the Jewish people fleeing from Nazi Germany in the 1930s, a number of whom were allowed into Britain. They found that there were other Jews who had settled from Eastern Europe. More recently, in the 1960s Uganda expelled its Asian population, simply because they were Asian. Some of those who held British passports were admitted to Britain.

`Empire Windrush`

However, economic factors have been behind much immigration. For instance, some of the first West Indians or Caribbeans who arrived on the Empire Windrush (a former troopship) in the 1950s came to find better-paid work than was available at home. They were encouraged by organisations looking for labour. In the public sector, London Transport needed bus crews, and the National Health Service was anxious to recruit nurses. The West Indians were followed by immigrants from the Indian sub-continent, many of whom came to work in the cotton and woollen industries.

Some would disparage immigrants to Britain who want to better themselves, terming them `economic migrants.` Yet almost all the massive emigration from the British Isles to North America and Australasia has been for economic reasons. The economies of the countries receiving them have benefited enormously from this immigration.

People still come to the United Kingdom for these different reasons. In 2002, 368,795 students arrived from overseas, and those with work permits (and their families) made up another 120,115. In comparison, claims for asylum totalled 86,130. Against these immigration figures are those for people leaving Britain: in 2001 about 308,000 people emigrated for a year or more (the official Home Office measure). Migration is a feature of the modern world, and the largest movements are of people fleeing war or civil unrest from one poor country to another.

You can discover more about the experiences of migrants arriving on these shores by visiting the 'Moving Here' website. There you can explore photos and documents and read personal stories about migration.

All our ancestors were immigrants

Intolerance and poverty