Two-thirds of Brits don’t think EU nationals should have freedom of movement

Two-thirds of British voters think that instead of having freedom of movement, EU nationals should have to apply to come to Britain following the end of the transition period. That's the findings of the National Centre for Social Research's annual survey of British political attitudes. 62% of people polled did not want freedom of movement for EU nationals. That number has actually gone down, as 74% of people gave the same response after the Brexit referendum in 2016. The poll also found that 51% of Brits thought the economy will be worse once the UK has fully left the European Union, highlighting that Brexit remains a divisive issue for the country. 80% of those polled thought that doctors should be classed as a high priority in a points-based immigration system, whereas only 18% said the same thing about bankers, and 19% about hotel cleaners. 60% said that care workers should be given priority though. The poll also suggested that generally immigrants should be treated the same regardless of what country they are from. 58% said it shouldn't be more easy, nor more difficult, for a French person to move to Britain, with 58% saying the same for people from Poland, 55% for people from Pakistan, and 53% for Australians. "Our research challenges some of the myths that surround the Brexit debate," said Sir John Curtice, senior research fellow at the NCSR and politics professor at the University of Strathclyde. "Voters did react adversely to the Brexit stalemate – but this reaction was to be found just as much among Remain voters as Leave supporters, while the experience seems to have stimulated rather than depressed voters’ engagement in politics." The UK left the European Union at 11pm on January 31st, 2020, after 47 years of membership. The country is set to leave the customs union and the single market at the end of 2020, when the transition period concludes.