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 Much is known about
those people who
immigrate into the UK,
because it has been
such a hot political
subject, debated in the
media, in academia, in
Parliament, and among
ordinary citizens.
However very little has
been known about
Britons who emigrate.
Almost the only source
of data has been the
pathetic International Passenger Survey of 755
people leaving the UK in 2004. So last year the
Foreign and Colonial Office (FCO) funded a study
by the Institute of Public Policy Research (IPPR) in
London to find out more about the British diaspora.
The IPPR describes itself as “the UK’s leading
progressive think tank.”
This is a useful and overdue study, although
I wish the IPPR were not as progressive as to use “data” as a singular noun, and to use the demotic
term “Brits” instead of “Britons”. What does it tell
us? Well …
• Before this study, really very little
has been known about our emigrants
• About 5.5 million British nationals
live permanently overseas, 9.2% of
the UK’s population, and more than
the number of foreigners living in
the UK.
• In 2005 198,000 left Britain to start
new lives abroad, and 91,000 came
back.
• More and more of the emigrants are
skilled.
• Most leave the UK because of the
allure of the place they are going to;
only 12% told the IPPR that they
were going because they did not like
what Britain is becoming.
• The majority of emigrants fit easily
into their new communities, but a
significant minority do not. (our
emphasis).
The IPPR’s summary of its
recommendations to UK policymakers
follows: “Given the importance of emigration
from the UK, this report suggests that UK
policymakers should pay more attention to
the issue. The UK government should follow
the lead of several other countries and
engage more with its diaspora. Such
engagement would allow the UK to harness
the potential of Britons living abroad to
promote trade and investment links, develop
overseas knowledge networks and act as
cultural ambassadors. More should also be
done to promote the political participation of
Britons living abroad and to make the most
of returning Britons.
“It will also be necessary for the UK
government to devise fair and workable rules
on how long and under what conditions a
Briton living abroad is entitled to British
public services. Such provision will not only
ensure that those who are entitled to benefits
receive them but will also help minimize the
destitution experienced by some Britons
living abroad who fall between the gaps of
national entitlements. (emphasis ours). A
better system of information on who is
abroad at any one time will also be critical in
ensuring the safety of Britons living abroad
during times of crisis.”
The relevance of the above recommendations
to the British Charitable Society is the usefulness of
the possible engagement of HMG with the local, i.e.
New England, diaspora. If, through voluntary
registration, the Consulate were to begin to assemble
a database of the names and addresses of British
National living in New England, we would, of
course, not have access to it. But it might be possible
for the Consulate to include references to the BCS in
their communications, i.e. as a source of help when
the Consulate cannot help, and as a worthy recipient
of charitable donations. The times they are achanging.
-- Thomas Keown
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