Call for evidence for inquiry into immigration and integration

1. How the division of responsibility for integration policy within government impacts on levels of integration across the UK, and whether a central government strategy for the integration of immigrants is required.

2. How a new post-Brexit immigration system could be designed so as to support communities to manage demographic and cultural change and better facilitate integration (measured by any or all of the following: civic participation, labour market entry and contact between migrants and members of the settled population.)

Stage 2 of this inquiry will focus in more detail on policy issues such as the provision of English as a Second Language (ESOL) classes and the process of becoming a British citizen. A call for evidence for Stage 2 will be released later this year.

Terms of Reference

For Stage 1, the APPG invites respondents to consider the two broad policy themes outlined above, and to address any or all of the following questions:

1. What is the current division of responsibility for integration policy within government?’What is the the impact of this on policy decisions and how could this be improved?

2. Should responsibility for migrant integration lie primarily with central or local government? What opportunities does the devolution agenda present in this regard?

3. Could the UK government draw on international examples to develop a new immigration system facilitating higher rates of integration?

4. What is the impact of immigration on public services? To what extent does the UK’s present immigration system enable policymakers and communities to anticipate this impact, and how could this be improved?

5. How has the development of alternative labour markets for migrants affected levels of integration? How could labour market regulatory reforms contribute to the development of more integrated communities?

6. What steps could policymakers within both central and local government take to promote contact between migrants and members of host communities? Are there examples of local best practice which could be drawn on in this regard?

7. London has the highest proportion of migrants amongst regions with comparable data in the UK.* Would a more regionally balanced dispersal of migrants lead to better integration? How could this be achieved?

8. To what extent could a migrant integration strategy be modelled on existing refugee integration strategies?

9. How do levels of integration differ between distinct migrant groups? How could a migrant integration strategy be shaped so as to respond to the circumstances, cultures and attitudes of particular migrant groups?

10. What are the measures and devices used by the government and its agencies to measure integration? Could these be improved?

Responding to the Call for Evidence

The APPG welcomes submissions of evidence from as wide a range of organisations and respondents as possible.

If you make a submission of evidence to the APPG, please ensure that:

• Your submission is no more than 2,500 words in length.

• You state clearly who the submission is from, i.e. whether from yourself in a personal capacity or sent on behalf of an organisation.

• You include a brief description of yourself/your organisation.

• You state clearly if you wish for your submission to be confidential. If this is not indicated, the APPG reserves the right to reference the content of your submission in future reports and publications.

• You email your submission in Word or PDF format to’appg.socialintegration@the-challenge.org

• You submit your response no later than Friday 9 September 2016

*House of Commons Library, 2016, Briefing Paper: Migration Statistics.