The Scottish public want immigration to be increased or remain the same (72%) rather than decreased (28%), A sizeable proportion want immigration to ‘remain the same as it is’ (34%). The impacts of immigration are seen as positive by the majority of people in Scotland (59%). People in Scotland have a strong preference for labour migrants to have the option to remain in Scotland for the longer term ‘to settle and integrate’ (66%).
The factors that should be weighed up by policy makers in this area are much more complex than those that can be captured through public opinion polling. Nonetheless, better understanding of attitudes, and how these change over time, can play an important role in identifying opportunities for policy change and highlighting areas of alignment, divergence or miscommunication, between political messaging and wider public views.