On behalf of British Future, Number Cruncher has polled attitudes to a range of issues around immigration ahead of today’s international migration statistics release.
The overall picture is one of scepticism, but not without nuance. A majority (55 per cent) want immigration reduced, and the public is largely unaware that net migration has fallen sharply since 2023 – half (49 per cent) wrongly believe it went up last year. The public also substantially overestimates the share of immigration accounted for by people seeking asylum, putting it at around a third when the true figure is closer to a tenth.
At the same time, even the most sceptical segments of the British public support increased or maintained migration to fill jobs in key sectors such as healthcare and engineering.
Tables can be found here and British Future’s report can be found here.
Number Cruncher interviewed 3,003 GB adults (18+) online between 19th-30th March 2026. Data are weighted to the profile of the population. Image contains AI-generated or modified content.
