Why immigration threatens the welfare state

the Migration that is threatened in the European countries the welfare state. According to a study by the Economists Alberto Alesina, Elie Murard, and Hillel Rapoport. Especially belongs to the elite American University, Harvard teaching Alesina to the Stars of the science. Rapoport teaches at the Paris School of Economics in the French capital, and Murard is employed at the Institute of Labour Economics in Germany.

The three economists have evaluated for their study, data from 16 Western European countries – including Switzerland. In the process, they have examined two types of data: firstly, such surveys to the setting in the respective country-Born Migration in different years. Then they compared this data to the actual migration.

The Economists were able to show that the willingness of the people to a redistribution goes back all the stronger the larger the share of immigrants in a Region increased. Not only the current but also the past, immigration plays a big role. Most clearly, it shows that where the welfare state is particularly strong: In the Scandinavian countries and in France.

The focus of the surveys was not among the countries, but to a total of 140 regions within the countries. The higher the proportion of immigrants in a Region is, the higher the Born in the country the proportion of migrants in the whole country. Switzerland is divided in the study, for example, in five regions.

The division into regions was one of many measures to be able to a clear connection between cause and effect filters. If, for example, a country with a less generous social benefits also lists less immigration, has to do with the setting of country-born people may be less than with a smaller suction effect. Considering, however, regions within a same country, the respective shares of immigrants is hardly different welfare state regimes, as they have in the whole country.

High percentage in Switzerland

A detailed analysis of the data for individual countries and regions is not found in the study. This is also not apparent how strong the effect in Switzerland compared to other countries.

the data indicate, however, that the proportion of immigrants in the total population in Switzerland was considerably higher than in all other considered countries. And that is the willingness for redistribution in 2002, was lower than in most of the countries examined, but higher than in Germany, and that she has removed to the beginning of the decade, recently but up again.

the Economists have also Investigated which characteristics of migrants and the influence in the domestic willingness to a redistribution-born of a particularly strong. So, show that the decline in readiness for redistribution is strongly influenced by the origin of migrants: immigration from the middle East and North Africa, this willingness is more than three times smaller than in the case of other migrants. Conversely, the redistribution of readiness in the case of immigrants from similar cultures and a similar ethnological Background, it is less negative, as those with a good education.

Born in the country, the willingness to redistribute in the context of Migration is lowest for less Educated, but also in the middle and upper classes. Significantly, and expected the result in terms of the political orientation of the residents is: Who classifies himself clear on the left, does not change his willingness to redistribution also in the case of a larger Immigration. Conversely, it looks at the Locals, who consider that within the political spectrum in the middle and to the right of it.

The authors conclude that it is the Left, therefore, is having a hard time, voters majorities at the same time for further immigration, such as for an Expansion of the welfare state to win. Parties seeking a reduction of the redistribution, in turn, can lead with good chances of success of the Migration for your destination in the to field. Anti-immigration parties would have an incentive to exaggerate negative information about the migration, because this would particularly rods well.

the results of the study shows that in all considered regions, and previous studies have also come to other countries to the same conclusion, that the connection between immigration and the welfare state is very widespread. The authors cite previous studies in the USA show that the lower Development of the welfare state can be explained by the considerably larger Differences within the structure of the population in terms of religion, ethnic origin, culture and races.

rupture of the contract

Like other Economists and historians have shown, emerged the present-day welfare States and redistributive systems in Western countries, historically, as institutions, mutual Rights and obligations, as well as hedges and grown.

The Opening of these systems to outsiders, especially those from entirely different ethnic groups and cultures – is perceived then by many as a breach of a kind of tacit social contract.

(editing Tamedia)

Created: 19.04.2019, 21:50 PM