People in the UK prefer a tougher approach on immigration compared with the US, but Americans more conservative on social issues

The National Centre for Social Research (NatCen) has today published the first report in a new series of research, comparing public attitudes in the United Kingdom with the United States, revealing significant contrasts between the two nations’ views on immigration, diversity, family, and the role of government.

The research shows that, while the UK public tends to hold more liberal views on issues such as abortion and same-sex marriage, people in the UK prefer a tougher approach on immigration and are less likely to see diversity as a strength compared with those in America.

With Reform UK’s rise in the polls, the research also explores how the views of Reform voters compare with supporters of Donald Trump in the US. While both groups sit to the right of their populations, the similarities only go so far. Reform voters take a tougher approach on immigration and race but take more liberal positions on issues such as abortion and contraception. The findings suggest that while both groups are driven by opposition to the political mainstream, the specific social and cultural issues that motivate their support are inconsistent in the UK and the US.

Key findings

Harder line on immigration and diversity in the UK

• 42% of people in the UK think immigrants living in the country without permission should not be allowed to stay and that there should be a legal effort to deport them, compared with 33% in the US.
• Around half (49%) of people in the UK think the UK’s openness to people from around the world is essential to national identity, compared with nearly two-thirds (63%) of people in the US.
• While 64% in the US think diversity strengthens society, around half (49%) of the UK public agree.
• Four in ten (40%) people in the UK think White people declining as a share of the population is bad for society, compared with just 22% in the US.

Britons are more liberal on abortion, contraception and same-sex marriage

• 86% of people in the UK think abortion should be legal in all or most cases, compared with 63% in the US.
• Nine in ten (92%) in the UK think contraception being widely available is good for society, compared with 78% in the US.
• 59% in the UK think same-sex marriage being legal is good for society, compared with just 34% in the US.

Similar views on transgender issues

• Around two-thirds in both countries (65% UK, 66% US) believe that whether someone is a man or woman is determined by the sex they were assigned at birth.

Different attitudes to the role of government

• People in the UK are far more supportive of a bigger state: 67% prefer a larger government providing more services, compared with 48% of those in the US.
• People in the UK are more positive about free trade than those in the US, with 65% in favour of the UK making free trade agreements with other countries compared with 39% of those in the US.

The UK and US are both politically divided, but not on the same issues

• In the US, the deepest divides are over abortion, same-sex marriage and the size of the state.
• In the UK, immigration and multiculturalism are far more polarising than questions of family or free trade.
• In the US, Trump supporters overwhelmingly (84%) favour a smaller government, while Reform UK voters are more divided (54% prefer smaller government).
• Reform voters are more likely than Trump supporters to say immigrants living in their country without permission should not be allowed to stay (79% vs 70%), and more likely to support free trade agreements with other countries (64% vs 31%).
• On abortion, Reform voters take a more liberal view, 82% think it should be legal in all or most cases, compared with 35% of Trump supporters.

Alex Scholes, Research Director at the National Centre for Social Research (NatCen), said: “Following last year’s elections in both the UK and US, we wanted to better understand how public attitudes in the UK compare with those in the US, and the extent of polarisation in the two countries. 

The idea that Britain is more socially liberal than America doesn’t hold up across all issues.  While the UK is clearly more liberal on questions to do with family, sexuality and religion, attitudes to immigration and diversity show the opposite pattern.  People in the UK are less likely than those in the US to see diversity as a strength, or to think that openness to people from other countries is essential to who we are as a nation. Our findings suggest that polarisation in the two countries looks very different. In the UK, the sharpest divides are around immigration and national identity, in the US they’re around social issues and the role of government. These differences will shape political debate on both sides in the years to come.”