Tony Blair
Prime Minister · 1997–2007
In one sentence
Opened the modern mass-migration era and chose not to cap eastern Europe.
Blair inherited net migration of around 50,000. He left it above 200,000 and rising. His government passed the Human Rights Act, expanded work permits, and — unlike France and Germany — imposed no transitional controls when eight eastern European states joined the EU in 2004. Official forecasts said 5,000–13,000 A8 arrivals a year. More than a million came. A former No.10 adviser later wrote that ministers also saw a political use: making Britain 'truly multicultural' and rubbing 'the Right's nose in diversity.'
Mass immigration was the way that the Government was going to make the UK truly multicultural.
What they did
1998
Human Rights Act
Drove incorporation of the ECHR into UK law. Article 8 family-life claims became the standard last-ditch block on deportation.
2000–2001
Managed migration
Downing Street's Performance and Innovation Unit reframed immigration as an economic and social good. Work permits were expanded; the Roche speech followed.
1 May 2004
A8: no transitional controls
Only the UK, Ireland and Sweden opened their labour markets immediately. Germany and France used the seven-year brake. The UK did not. Net migration jumped.
1997–2007
The numbers
Foreign-born population rose by about 2.2 million on his watch. Asylum claims peaked at 84,130 in 2002 before a later clampdown.
How they voted
Blocked it / opened it means they voted against tighter rules, or for the Human Rights Act. Backed it means they voted for a tightening bill.
| Bill | What they did | Note |
|---|---|---|
HRA 1998 1998 | Opened it | Government bill. His majority passed it. |
IAA 1999 1999 | Aye | Government bill. |
Sources: ONS; Home Office; Andrew Neather, Evening Standard, 23 Oct 2009