Anthony Browne, the outgoing director of Policy Exchange, has written for today’s Independent – backing what he admits is a "politically dynamite" case for an amnesty for illegal immigrants. Mr Browne is about to join the Mayor of London’s office, as head of policy. Boris Johnson himself backed an amnesty during the mayoral race – a position that puts him at odds with David Cameron.
In his piece for The Independent Mr Browne notes estimates that there are 400,000 illegal immigrants in the UK; largely in the south east of England. There are, he writes, three options to deal with this problem:
The most common objection to an amnesty is that it will only encourage further illegal immigration. Spain, for example, has granted six amnesties. The first amnesty twenty years ago granted residency to 44,000 people. The most recent and sixth amnesty – in 2005 – involved 700,000 immigrants. Anthony Browne says this can be avoided by doing much more to protect Britain’s borders.
> There is an extended profile of Policy Exchange in The Guardian, including an interview with its new Director, Neil O’Brien.