To say that most people in the UK want illegal immigration to stop

[Sleepysleepycoffeecoffee]

I recently commented on a Facebook post to say the majority of British people are against illegal immigration. I was asked by several other users what survey I based that opinion on. I responded with the question ‘do you think most people want illegal immigration to continue then? Because if not, then surely they want it to stop?’ I didn’t receive any responses to that.
Without getting into any political arguments or name calling and giving no ifs, buts or reasons for your view, please vote as follows.

YABU - I want illegal immigration to continue.
YANBU - I don’t want illegal immigration to continue.

Nope, i specifically remember people kicking up a fuss about Albanians. Who are white. Lee Anderson confronting the Albanian embassador trended for weeks

Sorry for the long post - it grew.

I feel like part of the problem we are experiencing in this (and similar) threads is one of terminology and assumptions.

Many pro free migration/anti asylum seeker detention people seem to have placed certain cast iron meanings on the term ‘asylum seeker’ or ‘illegal immigrant’ and base all their thinking on these.

From observation in these threads, the cast iron assumptions seem to be as follows - correct me if I’m wrong:

All asylum seekers have risked their lives on a terrible and dangerous journey from their home country.
All asylum seekers are fully educated on UK law (including that on rape) and totally intend to abide by it
All asylum seekers are from ‘war torn’ countries and definitely can’t return ever.
By virtue of being an ’asylum seeker’, none of these men intend to commit rape or murder in the UK.
By virtue of being an ‘asylum seeker’ none of these men are criminal fugitives or terrorists seeking a place to escape justice.
All asylum seekers are brown, therefore anyone objecting to their presence is racist.
All asylum seekers are so happy to be taken in, they will be eternally grateful to us and definitely never do anything to harm us like impose their harmful religious practices on us.
All asylum seekers are definitely genuine and would never be an economic migrant, just here because social media tells him the accommodation is good, the benefits generous and white women are free for the taking.

I feel like the problem here is that the rest of us understand that not all the above assumptions are true about asylum seekers.

Some are economic migrants. Some are rapists, murderers and terrorists (they have personally demonstrated that to us), quite a high proportion are white. There are tens of thousands of voluntary returns of people in the UK illegally, many of which are for social reasons, family weddings etc.

Men in the group ‘asylum seekers’ have proven to us that some are indeed rapists, murderers and terrorists. They are not so grateful that they will behave with respect and decorum, especially to women. On the contrary, they harass and film and sexually assault. Some Pakistani Muslims (one of the largest groups) have openly stated their hostility to our lifestyles and values and aim to widely impose Islam. They already have significant influence despite being only 6% of the population.

People are objecting to uncontrolled numbers of these men (and where are the women? Left to fend for themselves in some ‘war torn’ country?) entering our country, being allowed to roam freely while no one knows if they are a Nobel Laureate or a convicted criminal fugitive hiding from justice (unless they attack yet another unsuspecting British person or produce a work of scientific genius).

We are not racist, we are not xenophobic, we are stupid and being fed a line by ‘right wing’ politics - we just want control of our borders, not to spend billions and billions that we can ill afford on hotels and taxis to GP appointments (which British person gets a 200 mile taxi to a medical appt paid for by the state?), private dentistry etc.

People seem to like making themselves feel virtuous by being like Lady Bountiful and extending our national generosity to all they perceive to be below them and criticising all who object. I often wonder if this ‘saviour complex’ shows a deep insecurity or just a strong dislike for fellow Brits. Either way it’s hurting our society.

I have no opinion?

They are just different areas in London.

Why were these two particular areas used as examples?

If the U.K. did work out how to control borders as Aus has Putin would be unhappier about that. I don’t think people realise why pushing the movement of people is so useful to him.

It’s not even tied to a party, vote for whomever it’s not my interest. Just look at what a country has done to change the situation.

There are lot of comments from people who don’t see an issue, the poll shows otherwise. I those voting against illegal migration are fatigued with the name calling, the moral superiority of those name callers & just can’t be bothered to argue with feelings rather than look at facts

If the boats stopped tomorrow….we would be in the same shit because the powers that be prioritise their billionaire mates and not you,

That would continue,

Who will you blame then?

Disabled?
Benefit claimants?

What am I saying? Both of those already get hate….it would just escalate.

Your focus is in the wrong pace.

This

This is quite a strange view that fails to understand the impact on our country from mass immigration. Obviously there are other issues but many are made worse with the current situation with immigration.

Are you aware that at least one, maybe two new billionaires have been created from renting hotels to the government for asylum seekers? And that’s just those who reside in the UK. There are foreign owners as well with a far less traceable record.

Most migrants are not here until old age.

Most are young, working age.

If you want to piss off Putin, don't vote Reform and support rejoining the EU

I wonder which search engine you are using. It is clearly different to mine. I asked ‘How many asylum seekers return home for holidays and got this:

While exact "holiday" numbers are scarce, asylum seekers
can travel (sometimes back home), but it risks their claim; recent UK data shows tens of thousands of overall returns(voluntary/enforced) for those without status, with some Afghan refugees controversially returning for holidays, highlighting a complex picture of movement vs. protection needs, though most seeking asylum remain in the host country.
Why it's hard to get an exact number:

• Data Focus: Official statistics track returns(people leaving the UK, often after refusal) and arrivals, not specific holiday travel by asylum seekers.
• Voluntary vs. Involuntary: Most returns are voluntary, but some are enforced, and many people stay put.
• "Holiday" is Complex: People might visit for a short time without status, or for family reasons, making it hard to categorize as a 'holiday'.

What the data suggests:

• Returns Happen: Tens of thousands of people (including those with failed asylum claims) are returned from the UK annually, with 34,000 in 2024 alone.
• Afghan Cases: Reports in late 2025 highlighted that some Afghans granted sanctuary in the UK did return to Afghanistan for holidays, sparking debate about the severity of threats faced.
• Risk of Travel: For most asylum seekers, traveling back to their country of origin (especially if they fear persecution) can jeopardize their entire asylum claim or even lead to losing their right to stay.

In essence: While many asylum seekers stay put, some do travel, even to dangerous places, but this is often controversial and carries significant risks for their protection status.

If you look at the number of forced returns it’s significantly lower than voluntary

I haven’t posted I’ll vote for them. I didn’t vote for Brexit.

He’s still benefitting from pushing people movement to most of the EU and here.

Indeed….priorities are the accommodation providers. Not you or me. Again ….who will you blame when the boats stop?

Riiight.

If people immigrate here and want to settle here...... They then become old here.

I've been to Southall many times. I like the vibrancy of the place and find it very interesting, but would not consider moving there because I wouldn't want to live anywhere in London - it's just too expensive, too crowded and takes too long to get anywhere. The demographics of the area wouldn't put me off though.

I've only been to Whitechapel once with dd when she was looking at QMUL but it's not an area that I know well at all. DD ended up going elsewhere in the end, but it was a serious contender for a while. My cousin's daughter and her boyfriend live in Whitechapel - both white British if that makes a difference. They have been there for a few years and seem happy.

The assumptions you state are incorrect. I challenge you to find a PP using the word ‘all’.

Census data from 2021 for England & Wales shows the breakdown by age at arrival:

42.4% arrived aged 18–29;

21.1% arrived aged 30–44;

5.5% arrived aged 45–64;

30.2% were under 18;

Overwhelmingly young / of working age - which is logical as most migrants to the UK come to work or study.

This is a good thing of course, as we need workers like these contributing tax revenue to support our ageing population’s spiralling health and social care costs, and we don’t have enough British-born young people to do that.

What’s critical though is that companies pay everyone the same - fair, liveable wages which do NOT require benefits in top to make them sufficient - regardless of origin.

I read this also. There is no data here about holidays vs permanent voluntary returns.
Government data does not break out holidays! If it did, the earlier link you posted would gave showed it. AI is highly imperfect, you know.

As mentioned in your post, even a holiday in your home country can jeopardise your asylum claim. Once you have refugee status, your British passport forbids travel there.

“Men in the group ‘asylum seekers’ have proven to us that some are indeed rapists, murderers and terrorists.”

@BundleBoogie - just want to comment on your post without quoting it all.

Men in general have proven to us that some are rapists, child abusers, murderers, and terrorists.

It makes zero difference at all whether one has an open asylum application or not.

Why then import more men? Especially from the third world?

Statistics show that a disproportionately higher percentage of individuals convicted of rape in Denmark are immigrants or their descendants from non-Western backgrounds compared to their share of the total population.

I mean you talk about EU nationals leaving because of the racism, yet it’s quite well known that some (particularly) Eastern Europeans aren’t particularly welcoming to ethnicity minorities and racism is rife within that community.

Thanks for the response!

I actually think that Southall had a strong community feel but the demographics would put me off personally.

I lived in Tower Hamlets briefly (Blackwall) and it’s not easy to break into other religious/ethnic communities. Them again, Im a minority in white British areas, too.

I remember seeing on the news that Ukrainian migrants were complaining about how "non-white" some areas where.