Kingsley Purdam and Rob Ford from The University of Manchester use the Manchester Metrolink map to show levels of voter turnout and ask if there will be more or less local democracy in 2018. The 2018 local elections across England will be held in May, but despite their importance for policy they are likely to […]
All or nothing: new survey shows polarised views on immigration
Last week, the results of the British Attitudes Survey were published. Here, Professor Rob Ford who authored the survey’s chapter on immigration, looks at what the results mean for attitudes and potential policies around immigration. There has been a sharp increase in the share of Brits who see both the economic and labour market impacts […]
Ethnically targeted government assistance: a hard sell
How can the UK Government best tackle ethnic disadvantage? Dr Rob Ford looks at why a targeted approach aiming to tackle the problem directly could be politically dangerous. Discrimination is a serious problem in Britain. A wide range of research shows ethnic minorities suffer disadvantages in university applications, in the labour market, in the housing market […]
Migrant Drs keep the NHS going
Research led by Yasmin Ghazala Farooq with Kingsley Purdam, Aneez Esmail and Rob Ford at the University of Manchester has highlighted the vital contribution overseas trained doctors have made to people’s health and to the NHS in the UK. Given the ongoing debates about immigration control it is important to recognise that Britishness is a […]
Refugee crisis: An open letter to David Cameron and Teresa May
Academics Rob Ford and Maria Sobolewska have written an open letter, reproduced below and signed by 365 people, asking Prime Minister David Cameron and Home Secretary Teresa May urging them to do more to help the thousands of refugees currently trying to make their way across Europe. Rt Hon David Cameron MP 10 Downing Street London […]
Racial prejudice: how bad measures can lead us astray
Last year, the Guardian triggered a major debate over prejudice after a front page splash painted a dark picture of rising racial intolerance in Britain, writes Dr Robert Ford. But he argues that this debate was focussed on a poorly constructed measure – and that more robust measures paint a very different picture. There is […]
Polling Observatory #43: Stability returns with race close to dead heat
This is the forty-third in a series of posts that report on the state of the parties as measured by opinion polls. By pooling together all the available polling evidence we can reduce the impact of the random variation each individual survey inevitably produces. Most of the short term advances and setbacks in party polling […]
Polling Observatory 42: Sharp drop in Labour support adds confusion to chaos
This is the forty-second in a series of posts by Dr Robert Ford, Dr Will Jennings, Dr Mark Pickup and Prof Christopher Wlezien that report on the state of the parties in the UK as measured by opinion polls. By pooling together all the available polling evidence, the impact of the random variation that each individual survey inevitably produces can be […]
The Polling Observatory Forecast 5: Conservatives fading away?
As explained in the inaugural election forecast, up until May next year the Polling Observatory team will be producing a long term forecast for the 2015 General Election, using methods first applied ahead of the 2010 election (and which are also well-established in the United States). The authors’ method involves trying to make the best use of […]
Polling Observatory 41: Opinion stable for now, but election battle lines are being drawn
This is the forty-first in a series of posts by Dr Robert Ford, Dr Will Jennings, Dr Mark Pickup and Prof Christopher Wlezien that report on the state of the parties in the UK as measured by opinion polls. By pooling together all the available polling evidence, the impact of the random variation that each individual survey inevitably produces can be […]