Many worldwide oppose more migration – both into and out of their countries
As the number of international migrants reaches new highs, people around the world show little appetite for more migration – both into and out of their countries.
Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
As the number of international migrants reaches new highs, people around the world show little appetite for more migration – both into and out of their countries.
On issues including national identity and religious minorities, views among UK adults align very closely to general opinion across the EU.
A median of 23% in eight key countries in Western Europe name immigration as one of the top two problems facing their country.
They tend to be more left-leaning, more progressive in their social and political views, more receptive to immigrants and more favorable toward the European Union. They are also more mixed in their views of traditional center-left parties than older Western Europeans.
Reports of anti-Semitic incidents in France rose dramatically in 2018. Yet most French adults do not believe negative Jewish stereotypes and are accepting of Jews.
Younger adults in eight Western European countries are about twice as likely as older adults to get news online than from TV. They also are more critical of the media’s performance and coverage of key issues.
Americans and Western Europeans have broadly similar views on certain social and political issues. For example, majorities of Americans and Western Europeans see immigrants as beneficial to their economies and support certain rights for gays and lesbians.
Nationalist and anti-immigrant attitudes in Western Europe have been an issue in a number of recent national elections around the region. But Western Europeans vary by country when it comes to having positive or negative views about immigrants and religious minorities.
The differences over immigration policy between Germany’s Christian Democratic Union and Christian Social Union are also evident among backers of the parties.
People with populist views in Western Europe are more likely than those with mainstream views to distrust traditional institutions. While populist attitudes span the ideological spectrum in Western Europe, populist political parties are relatively unpopular in the region.
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