Post-Brexit immigration policy that shuts out low-skilled migrants won't suit anyone

The public debate on immigration typically depicts employers as favouring migrants for reasons of cost and superior “work ethic”. The public is usually seen as opposed to all but highly skilled migration, while migrants themselves are viewed as having little aspiration beyond low-skilled work. These three misunderstandings have led to the policy proposals in the recent white paper, which place tight limits on low-skilled migration which could considerably reduce EU migration. The policies will prove particularly problematic for employers in lower-skilled sectors – but evidence also suggests that they aren’t what the public want either.